FIGHTING TALK
Hamilton: My desire to win has doubled JONATHAN McEVOY
LEWIS HAMILTON promised to take a flight from Melbourne straight back to his Monaco home as a sign of his determination to maximise his chances of winning what may turn out to be a truly cross-team fight for the Formula One world championship.
Lewis being Lewis, however, that was not quite the case. He stopped off in Abu Dhabi en route from Australia to be pulled along by a pick-up truck for a spot of sandboarding, some snaps for his social media fans and, then, presumably, on to Monaco.
Australia’s opener confirmed the neutrals’ hope that Ferrari’s form in pre-season testing is not as illusory as last year, with Sebastian Vettel taking the win a place ahead of Hamilton.
Hamilton versus Vettel — or, as Britain’s Mercedes driver put it, ‘The Best against The Best’ — sets up a mouthwatering year, the next round of which comes in China on Sunday week. Hamilton, so at home in the red-carpet showbiz whirl, said he is determined to regain the title he lost to Nico Rosberg last year.
Asked if the battle with Vettel would be harder than against his former team-mate, Hamilton replied: ‘Definitely. I had a fantastic fight the last few years and last season was the closest.
‘I want to win the championship more than ever and while you’d think the hunger could not be more intense than last year, it has doubled.’
Speaking in Melbourne before his stop in Abu Dhabi, he said: ‘I’m going home after this. Usually, I stay out in Asia and train in the hot weather, but I’ll rest and make sure I come back fighting for the next race. I believe I can win and want to do that for the team and the fans. Yes, I’ve been enjoying myself. I always do, but if you look at previous years, I arrived at the first race just as fit.
‘I was on pole position the last few years in Melbourne. I always arrive fit and ready, so none of those things I do is a distraction. But my fitness levels are even higher than before. I have certainly applied myself better.’ The last championship fights that raged across teams were in 2012 and, more memorably, in 2010, when Red Bull and Ferrari vied for the crown.
‘My discipline has gone up in terms of my training and diet,’ said Hamilton. ‘Sleep — all of those different things I am concentrating on. Every year you try to improve. For example, I trained myself this year.
‘That was a challenge I set myself. I wanted to see if I could have the motivation to get myself ready and I have. I’ll continue to work because there will be some really tough races this year.’
The love-in between Hamilton and Vettel at the post-race press conference was obvious. How long that lasts is anyone’s guess — probably until they go wheelto-wheel and the sparks fly.