Midway through the Formula One season there was absolutely no doubt that Lewis Hamilton would take home his sixth world championship at one of the last few races of the season. Despite a last minute attempt by his teammate Valtteri Bottas to make up the points, Hamilton won the drivers’ championship at the US Grand Prix with his second place podium finish.
The Mercedes driver won his third consequtive championship, with team-mate Bottas topping the podium. The Briton is now just one championship title away from equalling Michael Schumacher’s world record of seven F1 world championships.
He's just one away from matching the all-time record @LewisHamilton became a six-time world champion in Texas today #USGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/11L1VkuZNr
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 3, 2019
The 34-year-old called this season “his toughest yet” and dedicated his win to his family and Niki Lauda, three-time F1 World Champion who passed away earlier this year.
“No way has it been the easiest,” he said at the post race press conference. “It’s been the hardest year for us and the team. We lost Niki this year, a crucial and pivotal member of this team. The emotional rollercoaster that we’ve been on with losing him, and I didn’t have Bono [race engineer Peter Bonnington] here for a race.
Here’s his full quote:
“Outside of the car, just trying to remain focused throughout the year, that is the toughest – and I guess only other athletes at the top of their game can relate to it.
“Week in, week out – you can’t drop the ball like I did [in qualifying], for example, and being able to bounce back from the lower days.
“This car has not been easy for us. We started the season going to Melbourne thinking we were going to be behind. At the mid-point of the season we were behind, it’s been a real challenge this second half of the season.
“I think it’s the toughest second half of the season that we’ve had as a team, fighting against Ferrari and Red Bull. We welcome that.
“But I don’t know: every journey’s different. Every year you go through a different roller coaster of emotions to get to where you’re going and I wrote something in my post this morning that each and every one of us is struggling with something in life, whatever it may be – small or big.
“I tried to show people that from the outside things always look great but it’s not always the case, and I’m also struggling with lots of different things.
“I’m battling demons and trying to make sure that I’m constantly growing as a person.”
