What Hamilton says about Ferstappen for the first time since Abu Dhabi

Because regardless of what happened in Abu Dhabi – which of course he was not responsible for – Max Ferstappen is widely regarded as a worthy 2021 World Champion given his outstanding performances last season. And that has been admitted by Mercedes F1 Director Toto Wolf.

Lewis Hamilton has been out of the spotlight, including on social media, for two months and has never mentioned Ferstappen since Abu Dhabi – until today, when he spoke about his relationship with the Dutchman on the sidelines of winter testing of 2022 cars in Bahrain.

“When we meet Max in the paddock, everything is normal,” said the seven-time F1 world champion. “We are two different drivers who have a lot in common in terms of how much we love what we do, the driving.”

The 37-year-old also spoke about the struggles he had with the Dutchman at the track which resulted in a collision between them on three occasions – Silverstone, Monza and Jeddah. The worst, of course, happened at the British circuit – followed by Ferstappen’s nasty crash at Copse corner and the Dutchman’s brief hospitalization while Hamilton won his home race.

“If I had sat down to read all the comments (on social media) after Silverstone, all the racist verbal abuse, I would have suddenly been in a very negative place.” said about.

“So I don’t let this elusive medium rule my life. One has to be careful because the way the media inflates an intense situation creates, among other things, a narrative for the viewers.

“On the other hand, we are relentless. It’s him, it’s me. That’s what you have to be, I imagine, in the way you work – but also with a little compassion. and skiing for example.

This is a matter of course. Sometimes we do things right and sometimes wrong. “The most important thing is to stay human when we get out of the car and keep that respect.”concluded Hamilton.