Lewis Hamilton relates to Formula 1 fans who would have relished a title battle that went down to the wire, but the Mercedes driver wants to get the job done at this weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix.
Hamilton acknowledged ahead of practice at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, “If I were sitting at home, making toast for breakfast and just watching the races on TV, maybe I would want the title chase to go right through to the end.”
“But I am not at home, and when you are actually living in the situation, you just want to get it done.”
“I think there have been times where we finished a little bit earlier in the year, and the rest of the season then wasn’t as exciting as if the Championship had gone right down to the wire.”
“But when you are in it, the pressure is just so intense that, the sooner the pressure is off, the more you can enjoy yourself..”
Lewis: I believe that the team has earned the position it is in
“That pressure is very intense. Even if we have opened up a gap as big as the one we have now, there are still lots of points available, and lots of things that can go wrong.”
While Hamilton is on the cusp of a fifth Formula 1 World Championship title, he is the first to spread the praise to his team who have given him the weaponry to do the job on what should be a fourth time. The first title he won was with McLaren, albeit Merc-powered.”
“There are a lot of people relying on me,” explained the Briton. “I also want to win the Constructors’ title for the team. At the last race, we lost some ground.”
“There are so many people in the team, and you actually feel the pain for them all because you want to deliver for everybody. I feel like I’ve done everything I could, but coming here this weekend and going into these next races, I believe that the team has earned the position it is in.”
“I need to secure that title because it can make a big difference for them too,” added Hamilton who needs to finish seventh in one of the next three races to wrap up the 2018 title.