Lewis Hamilton makes it clear he's back in the F1 chase. 'I've not lost what I had'
SUZUKA, Japan (AP) — Lewis Hamilton said he finished a recent morning training run and returned to his hotel sweating after his workout to find a few fellow Formula 1 drivers just getting up. “I know that none of the drivers I’m racing against have trained as hard as I have and given it what I have, especially at my age as well," the 41-year-old Hamilton said Thursday at the Suzuka Formula 1 circuit in central Japan, site of Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix. “I love that — that I still have that drive to push myself," he added.
Not that he needed a boost. Hamilton is Formula 1's most decorated driver. He's won the most races (105), claimed the most poles (104) and has been on the podium 207 times.
And the British driver is tied at seven with Michael Schumacher for season championships. But if he needed extra motivation he found it last year in his first season racing with F1's most storied team — Ferrari — after record-setting seasons with Mercedes. By Hamilton's standards, it was abysmal.
He didn't win a single race and didn't make a single podium. He finished four times in fourth place. Hamilton was suddenly an also-ran, an uncomfortable spot for the sport's most high-profile driver and its most familiar face for two decades.
It's early in the season, but Hamilton seems to have found a remedy. He has a competitive car, finished third two weeks ago in the Chinese Grand Prix and he's tuned out critics. “Just not letting all the (words) coming out of people’s mouths get in the way of knowing actually who I am and what I’m able to do," he said.