Hamilton poised to join pantheon of F1 immortals
MEXICO CITY — Britain’s Lewis Hamilton has no intention of easing up this weekend, even though he only needs a top-five finish in the Mexican Grand Prix to clinch his fourth world title and a place among the greatest drivers in Formula One history.
The arguments over his status have grown in volume in recent months, but they reached a new crescendo this week in the days following his ninth win of the season at last weekend’s US Grand Prix in Texas.
Hamilton’s Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff declared him to be on course to become “the best driver that has ever existed”, while veteran Brazilian Felipe Massa, who missed out on the 2008 title after Hamilton stole it from him with a passing move at the final corner of the decisive Brazilian Grand Prix, said that he ranks him alongside Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna.
Another title triumph will lift him clear of Jackie Stewart as the most successful British driver of all time, tying him at four with Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel.
Ahead lie only seven-time champion Schumacher and five-time title winner Juan Manuel Fangio.
Hamilton, however, has been keen to avoid the hype and said his mind is on winning Sunday’s race in front of a passionate and raucous crowd at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in the Mexican capital.
“There are still three races to go,” said the 32-year-old. “And in my mind, I still have three races to win. There are still a lot of points available — until you actually win the championship, you can’t get ahead of yourself.”
His caution is understandable as he and Mercedes know that despite the long straights and slow corners, the thin air at an altitude of 2,250 meters will help deliver a contest that could play to the strengths of rivals Ferrari.
Mercedes will run with a high down-force rig, as might be used in Monaco or Budapest, two circuits where they struggled this year, and this is the cause of their concerns.
Vettel, despite trailing Hamilton by 66 points and needing a huge shift in form and fortunes, will not abandon his hopes of stopping the Englishman’s immediate triumph.
But, as Massa put it, if anyone can win more or less anywhere in any conditions, it is Hamilton. He has reeled off five wins in six races since June.
“He is definitely one of the best drivers in the history of Formula One,” said the Brazilian.
“You cannot really take him away in a different level compared to Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna. He’s there.”
Wolff, a demanding team chief who has seen Hamilton add consistency and discipline to his unmatched talent for raw speed and aggressive racing, was even more effusive.
“Lewis is about to break all records that have been set in Formula One and it is just a matter of time that people will say he is on track to being the best driver that has ever existed,” he said.
“This is the best Lewis — both on and off the track — that I have worked with since 2013.”
Hamilton attributes his rise to “another level of driving” to two main factors.
The first was the retirement of veteran teammate and rival Nico Rosberg after he won the drivers’ title last year and the second was his switch to a vegan diet, which he credits with dramatically improving his mental and physical reactions.
“In hindsight, all things happen for a reason,” said Wolff, as his team celebrated four consecutive constructors’ title triumphs last weekend.