Formula One news
'I love my car right now' - Hamilton
27 July 2009For much of the first half of 2009, the McLaren-Mercedes MP4-24 lacked in downforce and straight-line speed although drastic revisions to the aerodynamics allowed reigning Champion Lewis Hamilton to clinch his first victory of the season in Hungary. In a tough year, motivation levels are increasing again in Woking.
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| In the aftermath of 'liegate', Lewis issued an emotional apology in Malaysia |
Having scored no points since the fourth race of the season in Bahrain, Hamilton's victory in Round 10 may have come as unexpected to some as the World Champion moves from 11th to 8th in the Drivers' standings. "It's been a huge turnaround," said the Stevenage star in reflection of events at the Hungaroring. "At the start of the season I said that, if anybody could do this, it would be Vodafone McLaren Mercedes."
Times on the stopwatch hit an all-time low for Lewis when qualifying on the back row of the grid for his home Grand Prix although the Englishman found himself on the top step of the podium only two races later. "To be honest, it was only as recently as the last race in Germany when I felt I had a good enough car beneath me," he admitted. "I remember I got a little bit excited over the radio, forgetting I'd not switched it off, and the whole team heard me - and then they played it to the guys back at the factory!"
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| There were higher chances to qualify well in Monaco, although a mistake put paid to those |
Having commented pre-season that realisation of being World Champion was likely to come when sitting on the Melbourne grid at the end of March, that moment in fact came for Lewis on 26 July. "I'd been waiting a long time for this day and I couldn't believe how well it all went," he continued, having last crossed the line first as only World Champion elect in China last season. "I was able to control the pace at the front; it's normally very hard to achieve that but on Sunday I was able to use my tyres, fuel and engine perfectly. I felt like we balanced everything and I felt really comfortable in the car but I was still being pushed by Kimi and made sure I could never back off.
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| McLaren wins its first race of 2009 at the Hungaroring |
"Things can only get better for us, I think. The updates we've introduced have made a huge difference and we've now got a massive downforce improvement and the car is a pleasure to drive. This is a great reward for everybody back at Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart - I know they're all completely knackered and I hope they get a good break over the next couple of weeks so we can be ready to come back and get some more podiums!"
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| Lewis wishes his friend as rapid a recovery as possible |
Although McLaren's success was a remarkably triumphant one, Hamilton realises that more serious issues dominated proceedings at the weekend. "My thoughts go out to Felipe (Massa) and his family, in particular to his wife and baby that's on the way," Lewis added. "I was so shocked about what happened on Saturday and there wasn't one moment in the race when he wasn't in my mind. It was a very unexpected accident and none of us can imagine what pain he was feeling. Fortunately, the car and the safety barrier did their job - the improvements we've made to safety over the past few years mean he's still around to see another day.
"Felipe and I have been quite good friends for several years so I have huge respect for him, especially after last year when we had some fantastic battles. I sent him a message and tried to call him on Saturday but, clearly, he still needed to rest and recover from his operation. I was so sad that he couldn't race with us on Sunday but I'm happy that he's safe. I want to wish him a very speedy recovery and look forward to competing against him for many more years."
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