A winning formula 297x297 28/11/07 12:59 Page 147
races he won. Such a generous bonus scheme was unusual, day, you feel fantastic and it is a big boost of confidence. If you 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship Race Calendar
but then nobody expected Hamilton to do as well as he has.) have a really bad day and you crash when everyone has
For Dennis, this was all a calculated risk. McLaren had never worked so hard for you, the biggest challenge is to bounce
Australian Grand Prix Melbourne 14 - 16 Mar
employed a rookie driver, and was on one of its longest ever back, come out looking fresh and happy. Give your team a
Malaysian Grand Prix Kuala Lumpur 21 - 23 Mar
losing streaks. The team failed to record a single victory in good feeling, and get in the car and do a better job. It is about
Bahrain Grand Prix Bahrain 04 - 06 Apr
2006. Between 2001 and 2004, McLaren won only eight races. mental energy and being able to balance yourself. You cannot
Spanish Grand Prix Catalunya 25 - 27 Apr
Turkish Grand Prix Istanbul 09 - 11 May
You have to reach back to 1999 for its last driver’s title be too aggressive. You cannot party too much. You can work
Monaco Grand Prix Monte Carlo 22 - 25 May
(Mika Häkkinen), and 1998 for its last constructor’s title. yourself into a hole. I think that is why I have a very good team
Canadian Grand Prix Montreal 06 - 08 Jun
Fernando Alonso was hired at the Brazilian Grand Prix in at home where I spend time relaxing with my family. If I get out
French Grand Prix Magny-Cours 20 - 22 Jun
2005, after he had won the first of his two back-to-back titles. of the car and I’ve had an incident, I go back to my brother,
British Grand Prix Silverstone 04 - 06 Jul
As the youngest ever world champion at 24, he was signed and he recharges my batteries and I go back out. Over the German Grand Prix Hockenheim 18 - 20 Jul
specifically to turn around McLaren’s fortunes. years you learn to cope with it.’
Hungarian Grand Prix Budapest 01 - 03 Aug
Hamilton’s appointment was much more of a gamble. Expecting media overkill on the Hamilton sensation,
European Grand Prix Valencia 22 - 24 Aug
‘The decision was not mine alone,’ Dennis has said. I was prepared to be disappointed. But I found him even
Belgian Grand Prix Spa-Francorchamps 05 - 07 Sep
‘I deliberately took a slightly back seat on the process, more impressive in the flesh than in the media. In sport, Britain
Italian Grand Prix Monza 12 - 14 Sep
to make sure it was something supported by everybody. rarely does ‘complete packages’. Sebastian Coe and Steve
Singapore Grand Prix Singapore 26 - 28 Sep
I didn’t want to find myself in a position where if he had Redgrave spring to mind, but we haven’t done it in football,
Japanese Grand Prix Fuji Speedway 10 - 12 Oct
Chinese Grand Prix Shanghai 17 - 19 Oct
struggled, people would be saying it was my decision.’ cricket, golf or rugby. Does Hamilton have a weakness?
Brazilian Grand Prix Sao Paulo 31 Oct - 02 Nov
Hamilton had become the monster to Dennis’s Frankenstein, ‘The biggest danger is yourself, letting yourself get into trouble,
and there remains the lingering suspicion that he was not born go off the rails, enjoy life too much, getting involved with the
in Stevenage but in fact created in a genetics laboratory in an wrong people. I have won every championship I’ve competed
obscure wing of the McLaren factory. in. I’m one of the youngest drivers. I don’t know anyone who
‘I think I am a fairly normal guy,’ Hamilton said, shrugging. has my CV. I’ve won a lot of races, and I’m still going.’
‘I love very much being a family man, not just my immediate
family but aunties and uncles and cousins. Every year we meet
up to have a big weekend together. I spend a lot of time with
my brother, who is my best friend. I gain a lot of energy from my
family and friends. I find it hard to trust people, and so I really
feel trust needs to be earned. I can count my friends on one
hand and I keep those closest to me. The others, they’re
friends but it is so easy to see the people that are just trying to
cling on or have just popped out of the woodwork all of a
BELOW: Lewis relaxing before the 2007 Monaco Grand Prix
sudden. The qualities I admire in people are politeness, © GETTY IMAGES
respect for others, loyalty, honesty. I like people who are
just themselves and don’t try to be anyone else.
‘I love making people laugh,’ he added, ‘and enjoying
myself. I’m very, very determined, very focused on achieving
my goals and will always put family first, racing second.
But nothing will ever come between me and my dreams and
my goals. That has really helped me. You need that push.
You cannot have everyone kicking you up the arse all the time.
You need to be able to do that to yourself. Even when you
make mistakes when you are racing, you need to be able to
bounce back. I have a really strong team behind me in my
family who have really helped guide me in the right way and
made me say the right things, but as I said I like having fun.
It is all about enjoying what you are doing. I love my job;
I believe it is the best in the world.’
Given his natural ability as a driver and his grasp of
mechanics, I wondered what specific challenges Hamilton
has had to overcome. ‘The biggest challenge is defeating
your opponents mentally,’ he said. Well, he has already
out-psyched Alonso, whose outbursts to the Spanish media
about favouritism after the Canadian Grand Prix show a driver
who had cracked.
‘You have to be able to control your mind, even when
you have bad days,’ Hamilton said. ‘If you have a really good
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