Progress from 2023
The Hungarian Grand Prix comes at a special moment in the career of Lewis Hamiltonwho returned to victory for the first time in the last race at Silverstone after an absence from the top step of the podium that had lasted since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP. Never before had the seven-time world champion waited so long between one victory and another, but the latest victory – in his home GP, among other things – gave the #44 extra motivation, especially a week after Mercedes’ victory, with George Russell, in the Austrian GP: “Compared to last year, we have a much better car, so I don’t know where we will be exactly compared to everyone this weekend. – the British explained in a press conference – we will be stronger than last yearbut I think it’s still very close between us and Red Bull. They will still have a slight advantage over us, but I think we’ll find out tomorrow. We still have a better race pace than in the past. After the win I’m still myself, but it shows that anything is possible. You just have to keep pushing, keep going.”
Game still open
Silverstone provided a joy that Hamilton, shortly after the podium, had compared to that of winning his world titles. But will the GP at the Hungaroring be the definitive test to understand if Mercedes is still in the condition to fight for victory in the next races too? “I don’t think it is – he continued – we absolutely don’t want to bite off more than we can chewbut I think this is the key point of our approach. I think the game is openand we will try to win as many races or compete for as many victories as possible. Maybe this weekend we will find out that Red Bull is still in the lead, or McLaren, who knows, but what we have shown in the last few races is that with determination, concentration and the continuous search for perfection and improvement you can make the difference. We are united as a team and we will try to finish the season on a high. If we can move up in the Constructors’ standings, if we can progress and not get too far away from the drivers ahead of us, then it would be fantastic.”
Sport still needs to improve
This is Hamilton on the eve of the Hungarian GP, who also dwelt on extra-sporting elements such as the recent coming out of Ralph Schumacher: “I think there is still a long way to go in sports. – he added – It’s one thing to say it’s inclusive, but it’s another thing to make sure people feel comfortable in the space. This is a male-dominated space, and as far as I know, he’s one of the first to be respected at least publicly. We’re very inclusive within our team, but I think sport must continue to do more to make people feel more comfortableor to make women feel more welcome in this space, because I know they haven’t always been treated well, and so we need to do more. I don’t have the solutions, but I know that a lot of the time it’s about having conversations, having conversations with key stakeholders, looking at how accessibility gets input from people who do or don’t feel included, or engaging the community. You could do a survey of every single person here and ask a few questions and ask them honestly how they feel and what they think could be done. There’s a lot that could be done, but first talk about it and don’t ignore that it’s an issue or put it at the bottom of the priority list. Raise the issue and have someone figure out how to make people feel.”
A problem, that of feeling free to openly express one’s sexual orientation without the fear of being judged, which adds to others noted by Hamilton himself, as happened in Canada: “I remember crossing the bridge and meeting a poor boy with a similar disability to my brother. He really needed a bathroom and there was a policeman standing next to this bathroom, but he was telling him he couldn’t use it. I remember stopping, I was on the phone as I was coming and I stopped to argue with the policeman. I said, ‘Please, this boy has a long way to go. But first of all, this boy shouldn’t be walking across the bridge, there needs to be more accessibility for people with disabilities.’ In the moment of frustration, I couldn’t do much to talk to that policeman, who still didn’t let him use the bathroom. But then I spoke to Stefano Domenicali and said, ‘We need to talk to the organizers of this event and ask them how we can improve accessibility for people in wheelchairs.’ Because since Frank (Williams) has been here, have you seen any progress in this regard? ‘I don’t think so.’ So there are many different areas and obstacles that we need to overcome.”
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