Hamilton denies having one hand on the title

  • Published on 28 Sep 2018 09:15
  • comments 2
  • By: Fergal Walsh

Lewis Hamilton says that he does not believe he has one hand on the 2019 title, despite holding a sizeable advantage in the driver's championship. With just six races left to run, the Briton is 40 points ahead of rival Sebastian Vettel

Last time out in Singapore, Hamilton dominated qualifying and the race, further extending his position at the top of the standings. The 33-year-old has won four out of the last five races, while Vettel has taken just one victory in the same time period.

But ahead of the Russian Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton denied that he is close to taking his fifth championship, and will not change his approach for the remaining races.

"I don't think you ever have one hand on it," Hamilton said. "You either have both hands on it, or you don't. Same as the last race, just taking it one race at a time, there's still a long way to go, a lot of points available.

"Six races are still a lot of races, it's a long season. We're really just head down, everyone's working incredibly hard to continue to improve the car. We're going to be faced with different challenges as we come to these different races, so the job is still exactly the same. The target is still exactly the same and the approach is still exactly the same."

Hamilton also described himself as a "pain in the ass" as he is constantly badgering his engineers about updates to the cars, which he hopes will steer them clear from Ferrari.

"I'm a pain in the ass to my engineers upstairs. I'm always challenging, challenging, challenging. Even if I'm wrong, still questioning, questioning, questioning,” he said "Some of that, I like to think, has had a positive impact... to spring an idea or a direction in which we've pushed the car and our understanding, for example of the tyres.

"I really do believe this weekend we'll be in a better position than we were here last year. Our understanding of the tyres is far greater than it was when we arrived here last year. It's still a challenge to get right. So, we will take our understanding from last year and that experience with a pinch of salt because the car is different, it's improved, and we've got different tyre this weekend."

Replies (2)

Login to reply
  • one hand? nope.. two. it's all over

    • + 0
    • Sep 28 2018 - 12:08
    • It aint over until the skinless man sings, and I havent cleared my throat just yet! ;)

      • + 0
      • Sep 28 2018 - 17:17

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

World Championship standings 2024

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
29 - Mar 2
Bahrain
7 - Mar 9
Saudi Arabia
22 - Mar 24
Australia
5 - Apr 7
Japan
19 - Apr 21
China
3 - May 5
United States of America
17 - May 19
Italy
24 - May 26
Monaco
7 - Jun 9
Canada
21 - Jun 23
Spain
28 - Jun 30
Austria
5 - Jul 7
United Kingdom
19 - Jul 21
Hungary
26 - Jul 28
Belgium
23 - Aug 25
Netherlands
30 - Sep 1
Italy
13 - Sep 15
Azerbaijan
20 - Sep 22
Singapore
18 - Oct 20
United States of America
25 - Oct 27
Mexico
1 - Nov 3
Brazil
22 - Nov 24
United States of America
29 - Dec 1
Qatar
6 - Dec 8
United Arab Emirates
-
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
29 - Mar 2
7 - Mar 9
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
22 - Mar 24
Australia Albert Park
5 - Apr 7
19 - Apr 21
3 - May 5
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
17 - May 19
24 - May 26
Monaco Monte Carlo
7 - Jun 9
21 - Jun 23
28 - Jun 30
Austria Red Bull Ring
5 - Jul 7
United Kingdom Silverstone
19 - Jul 21
Hungary Hungaroring
26 - Jul 28
23 - Aug 25
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
30 - Sep 1
Italy Monza
13 - Sep 15
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
20 - Sep 22
18 - Oct 20
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
25 - Oct 27
1 - Nov 3
Brazil Interlagos
22 - Nov 24
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
29 - Dec 1
6 - Dec 8
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
-
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Driver profile

  • Team Mercedes
  • Points 3,377
  • Podiums 132
  • Grand Prix 208
  • Country GB
  • Date of b. Jan 7 1985 (39)
  • Place of b. Tewin, GB
  • Weight 68 kg
  • Length 1.74 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar