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[bud]

Lewis deliberately locking up tyres to fool opponent...



Let sleeping sheep lie!

Ah, 3 forum views, told by the saga of the good, bad and the ugly

And the ugly being a fanboyistic grown man idolising another grown man like some kind of driving demi god.

In all seriousness Lewis was just pushing to the limit, locking his tyre was just a result of this, if anything it would have hampered his exit speed slightly.

[LRW]

Lewis' latest BBC Column....

BBC Sport

Tyres seem to be a big topic of conversation in Formula 1 at the moment, and although I'm not aware of all the complaints, I know people are questioning whether the racing is "real" or not.

In my opinion, it is "real" racing; it's just very strategic now.

When I first started in F1, you did not have to be strategic, apart from when you were trying to pass someone. You just had to go hard on the tyres and try not to lose any time. You still had to run as long as you could on the tyres, but you could push to the maximum, pretty much.

Nowadays, you can't do that - you have to manage the tyres.

Each tyre is different. There are different techniques for preparing and saving them in order to get the best out of them.

For example, a lot of the drivers are noticing that the first three laps of a stint are the most crucial for the life of a tyre. If you don't push in the first three you get more life out of them at the end.

But don't get the impression we are all effectively driving around with one arm out of the window. You still have to push, but within the boundaries you have been set.

So you try not to slide the car, and you try not to overuse the tyres.

In China, where we raced last weekend, Turns One, Eight and 13 are very hard on the left-front tyre so you have to approach them differently. You have to brake early and cruise into the corner to make the tyre last. In those corners, we are not on the edge - but in all the other corners we are.

For me, it is what it is, and I just deal with it. I don't feel it should be drastically different.

I don't particularly enjoy looking after these tyres in the way you have to - by being soft on the throttle, not pushing in certain corners, doing late downshifts, lifting and coasting - but I like the fact that F1 changes all the time and that you have to keep learning.

Driving standards
If you were watching the Chinese Grand Prix on television, you may have heard Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso and me having a bit of a chat in the room before we went out onto the podium.

We made a couple of references to McLaren's Sergio Perez and the way he was driving. Kimi had an incident with him that damaged his front wing and cost him some performance.

I didn't have much of an opinion about Perez's driving because I didn't see too much of it - certainly not the incident with Kimi.

I do remember seeing, in the distance, Fernando trying to get past a car and that it was weaving from one side of the track to the other. I was surprised at the time that the driver - which I now know was Perez - wasn't penalised.

The problem is that there is such a fine line between dicing and going too far. The stewards do a really good job - and they don't want to take away racing.

I've experienced that in karting. The clerk of the course wanted to ruin everyone's weekend and it took the fun away from racing. You don't want that but you do want consistency in rules. But it is so difficult to be consistent because every situation is different.

Young drivers are definitely the ones who have the most to learn, but I think the driving standards haven't been too bad this year. I don't have a particular problem with anyone.

Your questions
What is the favourite F1 car you have driven?
"The one I'm driving right now. I have always needed a car with good rear grip. I don't mind if I have to struggle with the front because you can catch that up. But I've always wanted to make sure I have plenty of rear grip and I've rarely had that before. Now, I've finally got a 'rear-ended' car and it's driving into understeer, and you have to work around it with mechanical balance.
Jamie Foxx

"I know people have this impression of me as a driver who likes to dance the rear end out, but that's just the way my cars have been. I'm quite comfortable being on the edge and having to balance it when it looks 'oversteery'.

"That's what I had to do with my aggressive style to get the car as far up as possible. Driving in that way enables me to make that kind of car shine more than it would do if I drove it normally. But I prefer the car like the Mercedes is now."

If a movie was made about your life and career, which actor would you want to play you?
"Probably Jamie Foxx. He would be awesome. He's one of the best actors around at the moment. I watched him in Django Unchained recently. Sick movie."

Is there a circuit currently not on the calendar you'd like to have as part of the season?
"I love the Nurburgring Nordschleife. That is hardcore. I would love to take an F1 car around there. And Macau. That is the coolest street circuit in the world. For me, it beats Monaco, and I love Monaco. It's twice the length of Monaco and it's such a challenge to keep your mind focused over such a long lap."

Has Nico pulled any pranks on you yet like he used to when you were team-mates in karting?
"No, it's a lot different nowadays. When we were in karting, we used to spend so much time together. We shared a hotel room because of budget. We travelled around together. We would do sneaky little things without each other knowing. It got us in trouble with our parents. It was funny all round.

"Now, it's just so focused. We don't have time to play. And as a driver, I want Nico to be at his best because when I finish ahead of him it's better that way. I would never want to distract him and him be on his back foot and then beat him. When you beat the person at their best, that's when you can feel the most satisfied."

Even though you've been around Mercedes all your life nearly, what other road cars do you like?
"I have a Pagani Zonda, which has a Mercedes engine in the back. That's the favourite car I have. But I'm really into old classics now.

"I'm looking at an Aston Martin DB5, which is something I have always wanted. I have a nice old 1965 AC Cobra. Such a great car. I have a Shelby GT 500, which is the Gone In 60 Seconds car.

"I also have a Mercedes SL65 Black series. I've had that since 2009 or '10 and it only has 200km on it. It's a special car for me and I don't want to put much mileage on it. I don't drive a lot."

Name one driver currently racing in F1 that inspires you in some way?
"Fernando, really. He feels to me like he's the most complete driver here. And with pure speed, he is rapid. He is such a quick driver but he's also very, very smart in how he does it. I really admire him for that.

"Fernando is always there. He has been the most consistent driver apart from Sebastian, who has also done an awesome job but he's been in the most dominant car.

"Before I got into F1, Fernando was the driver I most admired. Having driven alongside him and then been in the sport and seen him progress, it remains the same.

"Back in 2007, we were both immature and misbehaved. We took a long time to recover from that. Fernando probably said a lot of things through anger, as I did, and that got twisted and turned in the media which impacted on the fans. So there are people who don't like me and people who don't like him.

"He will go down as a legend. He will win more world championships. And to be in an era when there's a legend and to have him say such positive things about me, is a really cool feeling."

[Hammer278]

Nice read mate, thanks!

The SL65 Black S...damn, I love that car.

[LRW]

1965 AC Cobra

[racechick]

loving Lewis' columns!!

[Hammer278]

Check this out:

Exclusive Lewis Hamilton Q&A: We are way faster than I expected

When it was announced late last year that Lewis Hamilton would be leaving McLaren to join Mercedes in 2013, there was considerable shock in the paddock. But after three races - and two podium finishes - Hamilton’s bold decision looks to have paid immediate dividends. We caught up with the 2008 world champion in Bahrain to discuss, amongst other things, what’s gone right at Mercedes and what might be going wrong at his old team…

Q: Lewis, you must laugh at all those who predicted that your career would go south when you joined Mercedes. How does it feel proving them all wrong?
Lewis Hamilton: It feels nice! (laughs) It is good to walk around with my head up and smile at all those who have helped me in my decision and gave me the opportunity. I also feel good about myself. I have really thought it through and it is great to see now that the team is doing so well and that I can contribute to that success.

Q: Can it be that you are the one who is most surprised about the current situation?
LH: No, not really. I remember meeting with Ross (Brawn) before I signed; he came to my house and we sat down and he told me all the plans and I have been in the sport long enough to understand what he was talking about. I could see that Mercedes were en route to making some very positive changes - that they were really, really determined to turn things around. He showed me what potential there was in the car and I thought ‘wow, this sounds good’. Of course I didn’t know how good it would be and, to be honest, I never expected it to be as good as it is now. I thought it would be a slow but steady improvement - but it is way faster than I expected.

Q: The McLaren was the fastest car on the grid at the end of last season and the Mercedes was sometimes two seconds off the pace, but now - after three races - Mercedes is way ahead of McLaren. Would you have believed that if somebody had told you so?
LH: Definitely not. That is probably the biggest surprise - where we are in relation to them. The McLaren at the end of last year was awesome - the quickest car on the grid - and usually if you have the quickest car and there are not massive changes in the regulations you carry that into the next year. So it should, again, be a quick and awesome car, but for some reason - I don’t know why - it hasn‘t happened that way. But that is not my concern anymore! (laughs) And take Mercedes: they had a car that was nowhere, and look - we had a pole position last weekend! What a great feeling that was - it is a beautiful car to drive.

Q: So that marathon of improvement actually turned out to be a sprint…
LH: Ah, it’s not that easy. We still have a lot of work to do. It is still early in the season and we can still have bad races. But fingers crossed that won’t happen.

Q: What is going so wrong at your old team, McLaren?
LH: I don’t really know - I haven’t even spoken to the drivers about what is happening there. It surely has something to do with the downforce on the car. It was there all last year but probably they tweaked something. I thought that the car looked the same, but I was told that they’ve changed the car completely. They’ve probably made some big decisions which they thought would translate into big gains, but that hasn’t happened. Actions like that are not unusual with McLaren. I have experienced that in the past, particularly in 2009 and in 2010 as well. So it’s not unheard of that they make drastic changes. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.

Q: And what’s going so right in your current team, Mercedes? The winter tests weren’t that promising - and suddenly you have a pole in China and two podium places so far…
LH: I think that they’ve been lost before. They have even said that. The aerodynamics, the wind tunnel - people were in the wrong place - so they took a step back and tried to analyse everything and move things into the right position. The car has just been on a positive curve since they changed the wind tunnel - since they made all these changes within the last half year - and they’ve been improving at a very serious rate.

Q: And obviously with you they’ve put the right man in the cockpit…
LH: Hopefully. I’ve tried to be as helpful as possible. But even if they didn’t get the results last year, this is a fantastic team and they clearly had the ability back then - but sometimes you just get lost. Even with McLaren - such a great team - they have troubles now. It is so easy to lose your way and it is so hard to find it again. I am so glad that Mercedes have now found it.

Q: We hear that there will be no more team order at Mercedes. Were you surprised that there was one issued in the first place?
LH: True, I haven’t been in that position for a long time and obviously it came as a surprise. I tell you, it is not the greatest of experiences. After the race, as we sat down and talked, I understood the situation and now I feel a lot more positive about it, but also we must make sure that we are never in such a position again.

Q: Without a robust ego you don’t get anywhere in F1 racing. How much elbow room should there be for a driver?
LH: Oh yes. (laughs) Wow, that’s an interesting question - I have never been asked that before. Let me think: I feel that I am fully a team player. Of course when you are driving and are in the position that Nico (Rosberg) was in, he had to put his own ego to one side. Even for me, my ego was affected by it because my team mate was quicker than me at the point, and that is something a driver never wants to see - that his team mate is faster.

Q: So at that point you were both losers - you because he was faster, and Nico because you bagged his podium?
LH: Let’s put it this way: it was a win-lose, win-lose situation.

Q: Your lapse in Malaysia when trying to pit at the wrong team caused much laughter. But in reality, how much contact do you still have with McLaren? You’ve grown up with them so a new contract can hardly cut off such deep roots…
LH: I went to see them in Australia. But I also tried to see them in Jerez, at the test, and there Sam Michael threw me out of the garage. That wasn't very positive and I don’t feel very good about that. Martin (Whitmarsh) has been great and I have to say that I haven’t had enough contact, so I will give Martin a call.

Q: You’ve looked more concentrated since you joined Mercedes, but you also seem to laugh less - at least during your working hours. Why?
LH: Really? Maybe it is that I have so much to take in at the moment. I don’t have time to laugh and chill. When I was at McLaren I was at the top of everything - I knew everything: what the car was doing, how people reacted - so it was a lot easier as I knew exactly how I wanted to have my car set up. Here I have so much more work to do with the engineers - so many new, different things on the car that I still don’t fully understand - so I have no time to mess around. But don’t get me wrong: I am still having a great time.

Q: From Barcelona onwards, there has been talk of Pirelli looking at the tyre situation. If they made changes would the racing lose the current spice and is there really such suffering at the moment? The way the tyres are now seems to separate the wheat from the chaff in terms of drivers…
LH: I don’t know what’s coming our way, any improvement is welcomed and will be very positive. And about the wheat and the chaff; that’s not really so. The more balls you can juggle the better you are - all the different techniques you have to do to look after your tyres the better you are as a driver - and that is the challenge. So hopefully after Barcelona there will be fewer balls that we have to juggle.

Q: A pole position and two P3 finishes. Isn’t it about time to count down?
LH: Well, yes, second place is the next position. One step at a time. I don’t want to shoot straight at P1 - but of course if it comes, it comes. I am not saying ‘we have to win’. So if we move forward - a second place and then a first - that would be fantastic. So my target for this weekend is to finish higher than last weekend. And all signals suggest that we can do it. I feel very positive for this weekend. Sure it is a very tough track for tyre degradation, but generally I’ve always been quite quick here. So I’ll keep fingers crossed to end up in a better position than last weekend. (laughs)

__________________________

Sam 'Fired by Williams' Michael is all "You don't belong here anymore, fella who's been part of McLaren since 11 years old!"

Good to see Martin has some class though.

[CookinFlat6]

'this aint your place no more boy'

A insight into how that team is run. Sam is the next McLaren TP as Whitmarsh confirmed, and is already stamping his own special mark on the team

Tragi-comedy is turning to farce at Mclaren

[Denthúl]

Wait, what?

Lewis is now a rival employee. If I was running a team and you let a rival in to the garage during testing, when the car was on show and there was potential to gather sensitive information about it, I'd be having bloody strong words with you. In the team motorhome? Sure, come over and have lunch. Have a chat out in the pits, or the paddock. But not in the garage.

[CookinFlat6]

Drivers, celebs, the press are in and around the garages all weekend. I'm sure Lewis is expressing what he said in the right context. When he popped over to the Red Bull garage couple years ago they didn't pull the 'secrecy' card and they have more to lose than the current McLaren team

This smells of plain spite and jobs worth power tripping

[CookinFlat6]

Expanding on the Sam Michael story, the guy seems completely petty, vain and fussy. While the team are going down the drain all he knows is to break the pit stop record. Probably put pressure on the pit crew leading to mistakes. Just doesn't seem to have common sense, probably plays the big 'I am', doesnt have any technical or driving skills but I bet he acts all superior to those team members whilst crawling to Ron and Martin.
The kind of guy who gets a business degree from an unheard of university and starts telling everyone about the boston matrix or some other irrelevant crap and never stops whining in his irritating accent

So instead of get Lewis out the garage subtly and diplomatically, he upsets the top driver who has resisted critiscising his old team.

No wonder Williams payed for a taxi for him when they sacked him and he got snapped up by McLaren.
Funny how quickly he seems to be completely integrated with the team. Whitmarsh just doesnt seem to have any control over his disturbingly 'ambitious' staff

And I bet it was Sams idea to stop crew wearing shorts

[racechick]

I can understand a possible worry about a rival driver coming into the garage during testing (but come on, this is Lewis, Mr. Naive ) ok , so Sam thinks its a genuine threat, is it so difficult to say to a guy who's been at that teem since the age of 11!!!! Something along the lines of ' hi Lewis , good to see you, how's things Dude? It's perhaps not a good idea you're in the garage right now, come back scene for a coffee or meet you later in the motor home'. There's just no need to be arsey really.

[What's Burning?]

Not entirely sure what happened in the garage but I get the gist of it given the posts. Maybe Lewis was going to give Jenson his set up to get Mclaren righted like he did last year?

[CookinFlat6]

Maybe Lewis was on a mission to steal the secrets of Jensons balance

[bud]

Agh another day on forumula1.com another captain cook bagging McLaren, Button, Whitmarsh or Michael tirade!

[racechick]

Sam Michael actually. Keep up! Keep up!