Lewis Hamilton has revealed that Mercedes’ troubles in Formula 1 across previous seasons prior to its turnaround in 2024 taught him how to be “a better team-mate”.
Mercedes endured a chastening period upon the regulation reset in 2022 as the eight-time Constructors’ champions struggled with the series’ return to ground effect.
The German marque’s various setbacks witnessed Hamilton conclude an F1 campaign without a win for the first time in 2022 and that extended into the next season.
But while it sustained more complications earlier this term with a revamped car concept, Mercedes has since developed the W15 into a regular race-winning package.
Hamilton ended his elongated wait to clunch his next win with an emotional success on home soil at Silverstone, while he was victorious again in Belgium last month.
The Briton, who will switch to Ferrari in 2025, has opened up on how the barren run that Mercedes experienced served to improve the communication inside the team.
“It’s not how you fall; it’s how you get up,” he told American magazine Esquire. “It’s how you continue to apply yourself every single day.
“It’s how you connect with people that you work with. I probably learned to be a better team-mate in this period of time, because we’ve had more time to focus on communication.”
Hamilton conceded post-race at Silverstone that there were moments over recent times where he even contemplated whether he would win a race again in the sport.
The seven-time F1 champion has explained that learning to deal with the doubts that emanated erom his extensive drought ended up becoming “a battle of the mind”.
“Keeping yourself sane, trying to pick up new tools,” he expanded. “Ultimately, it always comes back to persistence and dedication.
“Hard work. It always does eventually pay off.
“I think I learned that life is really about how much pain you can experience and keep going, and how much you can suffer and keep moving forward, you know?”
Hamilton has expressed satisfaction with how Mercedes has recovered this season as he sets his sights on landing more victories in his final 10 races with the team.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the people that I work with on this team,” he told media including Motorsport Week at Spa-Francorchamps.
“Mercedes supporting me at 13 years of age, giving me the chance to be a F1 driver for them, and then taking me on to this team, and putting all their faith behind me all these years.
“So, it’s been amazing, and we’ve gone through difficult times, but we’ve always come out with our heads high. I think we’ve stayed very, very true to pretty good values.
“And so, for us to have now gone through this difficult phase, and us now slowly building back up to fight and win is a great, great feeling.
“I’m proud of the work George [Russell] and I did with the team, I’m really excited about the next three months.”
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