Lewis aims to be that Brit special
LEWIS HAMILTON walked disconsolately back from his parked car, an oil leak having put an end to his participation on the windblown tarmac of the Second World War airfield called Silverstone.
That was the scene yesterday afternoon in practice for the British Grand Prix. He had completed just 14 laps in the session, compared to the 35 of his Mercedes team-mate and world championship rival Nico Rosberg.
‘The car was feeling good,’ said Hamilton. ‘I just missed the most important run. It happens, but I don’t know why it happens to my car so much. I really needed that. I can’t keep stopping, but we’ll learn from these experiences.’
Yet, in what Hamilton’s supporters will hope is a happy portent ahead of qualifying today and the race tomorrow, he was still top of the timesheets by 0.288 of a second.
Rain is forecast for this part of f Northamptonshire over t he weekend, during which Silverstone’s rich history will be celebrated.
A parade of old cars, driven by old stars, will be part of it. It will link the first race here in 1948 — the RAC International — to the present day, the 50th staging of a grand prix.
Hamilton is joining in with the patriotic theme, wearing a Union Flag on the underside of his cap peak.
‘It’s always a special weekend for us British drivers,’ he said. ‘Winning this race is like winning an Olympic gold medal.
‘The support here is very exciting, the feeling of being at home is really a great one. It’s unlike any other place we experience. We are going to do our utmost to try to represent and perform for the country.
‘With Mercedes as a leading team, I hope we’ll have a good shot this weekend.’
Standing in Hamilton’s way is Rosberg, the blond assassin who leads him at the top of the standings by 29 points. The German was calmness personified in his post-practice interviews last night. Rarely has a Formula One driver been more assured and more focused than this man.
Hamilton meantime is taking tablets for hay fever. ‘Everything comes from the doctor and is FIA approved,’ he said.
‘When I was a kid, I had a severe allergy. I remember doing my GCSEs and sitting there with a box of tissues. Everyone was getting on with the exams and I was blowing my nose all the way through.
‘I’ve tried every medicine on the market since I was 10 and I only take it when I really need it.
‘I haven’t driven suffering from hay fever for a while but it is just this weekend with the weather having been great and the pollen high. I will be fine.’
The two men see only as much of each other as their jobs demand. Hamilton is staying at his father’s house in Hertfordshire, driving in each day. Rosberg is sleeping on site in his motorhome.
Each of them is trying to find the fractional advantages that can be found in the minute details.
‘You are looking everywhere to make a difference,’ Hamilton said. ‘Everything is transparent. Nico and I work quite well together — but we are battling each other fiercely.
‘On the track, there are things you hope will give you time. He might take an apex early f or example and hope that I don’t see that in data and vice versa.’
Can anyone possibly stop either of t hese t wo? Without t he intervention of the weather, it is hard to see how. The Mercedes is too quick for all the rest.
That i s what makes this a fascinating contest. The stakes are high. If Hamilton does not win the title this year, one wonders whether he ever will again.
But the season is only into its ninth round of 19 and there is time for Rosberg’s successful run to be stopped, just as Hamilton’s early form was.
The British driver added: ‘ The tables turned against me in Monaco and that broke my momentum. Nico has had it for a few races. Now it’s time to do the same thing the other way round.
‘It’s still early days but there is never a point where you can be too relaxed and think there is a long way to go, because there will be a time when it is too late.
‘There is no time like the present and this is the best place to do it. It is almost like a sailing boat that needs a gust of wind to change direction.
‘I hope the British Grand Prix and the fans can do that for me.’