Lewis can’t hold back tears after emulating Schuey
AFTER winning a difficult race to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven world championships, the hardest thing for Lewis Hamilton was containing his emotions.
His voice could be heard breaking as he thanked his team over the radio moments after crossing the line at the Turkish Grand Prix, while underneath the helmet the tears were starting to build up.
‘All these emotions were running through me and I was trying to stop it,’ Hamilton said later.
‘I was thinking about my whole career, from when I was five when I drove in a go-kart, from when we won the British championship, driving home with my dad and singing “We Are The Champions” and dreaming of being here.’
Moments after victory No.94 and title No.7, Hamilton sat in his car with his head in his hands.
‘It really hit me and I just burst into tears. I couldn’t get out of the car because I just couldn’t believe it,’ added the 35-year-old.
‘I didn’t want the visor to come up and people to see tears flowing, because I had always said I would never let you see me cry. I remember watching drivers in the past crying and I was like, “I’m not going to do that”. But it was too much.’
Hamilton only needed to finish ahead of his team-mate Valtteri Bottas to seal his sixth title for Mercedes, and Bottas placed a lowly 14th after making a poor start. The British driver started from sixth place but still won a fourth straight race and tenth of another hugely dominant season.
Hamilton ended up about 30 seconds ahead of Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who overtook team-mate Charles Leclerc on the final lap for his first podium of a difficult season.
It was also Perez’s first podium of the campaign, while team-mate Lance Stroll finished only ninth
despite leading from pole position for much of the 58-lap race.
Stroll started ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on a resurfaced and skiddy circuit not used in F1 since 2011. ‘This was a big test for me,’ Hamilton said. ‘I don’t remember having an ice race before.’
A chaotic start saw Verstappen stall while Hamilton moved up to third only to lose grip and get overtaken by the Red Bull’s of Alexander Albon and Verstappen.
Halfway through the race, Stroll and Perez were ahead of Hamilton but losing ground. Stroll came in for new tyres on lap 37 and Hamilton used DRS to get past Perez one lap later and take the lead.
Stroll’s tyre change backfired and he was soon passed by both Ferraris, while Bottas spun for the fourth time at the back of the pack. On a humiliating day for the Finn, he was lapped by Hamilton near the end.