Racer - OCTOBER 2017

FORMULA 1: THE SPEED ZONE

hotter, more into the window, they grip
more and you don’t get the shuddering, but
then when you go beyond the window they
start sliding again. They don’t shudder, it
just goes like this... (Hamilton simulates a
smooth slide with his fist.) When they’re
cold, they shudder, and when you’re in the
window they generally grip. The goal is to
be in that sweet spot, in the window, without
going beyond it. Of course, sometimes you
do go beyond, but you try and avoid that.”
Last year you had to be more cautious in
the early laps, but you can be a bit more on
the limit now because the tires are better.”
While Hamilton is not a fan of F1’s
overtake-assisting Drag Reduction System
(DRS), or how difficult it is to follow
another car under the new regulations, he
revels in the ability to produce consistent,
qualifying-style laps later in a race.

“The last 10 or 12 laps in Belgium
were like qualifying laps every lap,” he
enthuses. “It’s awesome as the car starts
to get lighter and lighter. You start off
heavy, so you’re not really pushing, but
you’re using fuel and the car’s getting
lighter, so you start to push more – and
pushing more means you’re using more
fuel, so the car’s getting even lighter.”
Lighter means quicker, of course. But
like most things in F1, it’s a balancing act.

“You’re thinking, ‘I’ve got to improve my
time! He’s just done a 46.0, so I’ve got to do
a 45. 9,’ and you push a bit more,” says
Hamilton. “Every time you push a bit more,
the car’s getting just a little bit lighter,
fuel-wise, so the lap time continues to drop,
but then the tires are going off, so you’re
constantly battling with that.”
Hamilton’s abilities in F1’s current era
are unquestioned as he continues to set
and break records. Starting races at the
front makes it easier to finish there, but the
racer inside of him wants the sport to work
at facilitating closer fighting on track, too.

“It’s been hard to overtake for many, many years,” he says. “But years ago, it seems the cars weren’t so sensitive, so they could run a little closer. That’s what I’d love, being able to race super-close.

“It must have been awesome back in the
Fifties, with no complicated aerodynamics,
so you could get a lot closer, and it was all
about your feel with the brakes and that
sort of stuff. I miss that.”
Missing that, but currently chasing a
fourth title that would move him level
with Vettel in what is fast becoming a
classic rivalry. Hamilton may not be able
to take us in the car with him, but the
battle to be the greatest driver of this era
is a badass roller coaster ride of its own.

While reveling in the incredible performance of the 2017 F1 cars, Lewis Hamilton wouldn’t be averse to shedding some of the complex and sensitive aero if it meant closer racing.

(LEFT, going side by side with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.)

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LEWIS HAMILTON
“You’re thinking, ‘I’ve got to improve
my time! He’s done a 46.0, so I’ve got
to do a 45. 9,’ and you push a bit more”

In free practice, a lot of work can be done on optimizing setup – something Hamilton describes as “being tested at the most ridiculously tough university, going for the physics degree” – but being able to adapt to a changing car over a grand prix distance is another challenge.

“In qualifying the car’s light, minimum fuel, and the tires are super fresh, so you can throw it around. Whereas when you start the race, you’re on heavy fuel and it’s a bit like baby steps because while you know where the grip is, you don’t want to overstep the limits too early on because then your tires won’t last the distance.