http://bleacherreport.com/articles/58344-lewis-hamilton-astounding-or-atrocious When Lewis Hamilton lost the World Championship in his rookie season by one point, I was one of the many who admired the rookies talents. When the 2008 season began with Lewis victory at Melbourne, I personally thought that it was THE best way for a driver to start his championship bid after a disappointing first year. However, as the season progressed, I have slowly switched sides, and recently have become a fan of www.lewishamiltonsucks.com. I am sure that I am not the only one to share this view of the Briton, and I began pondering how anyone can turn their back on an amazing driver such as Hamilton. Although many claim that the hatred against Hamilton is purely based on his African American roots, many also argue that they are rather tired of his antics. For me, personally, the latter is very valid. While Robert Kubica, in a recent interview, declared that all drivers respect one another, Hamilton made this comment when asked about the Kimi Raikkonens driving skills at Spa: Thats the way he drives. If you dont have the balls to brake late, thats your problem This statement wouldnt have enraged many Ferrari and Raikkonen tifosis if Hamilton had only stopped speaking after that. However, he took the liberty to comment on Felipe Massas position in the championship: Massa is the one who has to work damn hard to keep up with me. In a previous interview, he has openly talked about his superiority over all the other drivers from the past and the present: "I'm no No 2, whoever you put me next to - even Michael Schumacher." Although I agree that every driver should consider himself second to none, blatantly claiming supremacy over a legend such as Michael Schumacher is rather primitive. Even though one can state that Schumacher was also arrogant, and that arrogance is required to become a champion in this sport, Schumacher has seldom shown his arrogance off the track. He might have driven reckless, he might have gotten into fights with David Coulthard over racing incidents, and he even might have even purposefully blocked the Rascasse hairpin in Monaco in 2006 to secure pole position; but no one has ever called that man arrogant, because he did what a racing driver is ought to do: drive, fight and win at any cost. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who's the Greatest Athlete of Our Time?Hamilton does have something in common with Schumacher, as he will also do anything to win. He will drive his heart out as he declared in an interview: I'm a racer, I do the best job I can on the track and I race my heart off. That statement would have been acceptable if he had only decided to stop there; however, he continued on to say that Theres no-one that puts more heart into it than me. My question would be this: why would people spend millions purchasing Formula One teams, and hire drivers who dont want to put their hearts into this sport or who dont want to win the World Championship? Everybody agrees that Hamilton is a good driver, but he is also not a perfect driver. Whether in racing or in life, everybody makes mistakes; the highlight of Hamiltons faux pas came in Canada when he disregarded the red light at the end of the pit lane, and ended Raikkonens race. During the Thursday press conference at France, Anne Giuntini from LEquipe asked Lewis the following question: Sorry to disturb you, Lewis, but is it what you call a small incident involving Kimi being a victim? Is it smaller than a mistake that would annoy only you? Instead of providing a straightforward answer, Hamilton reflected with this rhetoric: Thats what I just said, didnt I? Correct me if Im wrong, but isnt that a little arrogant? Kimi made a similar mistake in Monaco when he ran into the back of Adrian Sutil, but he had the balls to openly confess to the heart stricken Force India driver. Hamiltons self proclaimed superiority over the other drivers goes deeper when he blatantly admitted that he has a more athletic than most drivers. At the Thursday press conference in Britain, Hamilton was asked the following: At the Reebok launch the other day you were quoted as saying you thought you were fitter than Jenson. Is that the case? Hamiltons response was obvious: Ive noticed that Jenson has a bit of a belly and so Im only joking! I was just trying to be positive. I think anyone can agree that one can be positive about themselves without putting anyone else down. When Jensen Button threw down the gauntlet and invited Lewis to a triathlon, Lewis initially agreed only to back down a while later due to concerns shown by his management. I am completely aware of the fact that there are people who are ready to say that I am reading between the lines here, so here is a final quote from the omnipotent Hamilton himself from a TV interview, where he was questioned about his feelings from Turn One in Hungary, where he and Heikki Kovalainen lost their first and second place on the grid, respectively: Hungary was a disappointing first corner for me. As you know, when Im racing, generally no one overtakes me. And if they do, its only on the inside, and thats a big gift. When I got overtaken on the outside, thats something I swear would never happen again. I dont think it can get any clearer than that. Hamilton: I am the best. In my opinion, Hamilton has to realize that he indeed is a human being and not a demigod as he thinks he is. When a manufacturer such as McLaren provides a car such as the MP4-23, a driver has to be able to extract 100 percent from the car, and provide results. There is no surprise that Lewis is winning Grands Prix with that car; however, whats more surprising is the fact Fenando Alonso was able to finish fourth in the Italian Grand Prix after starting eighth on the grid with an inferior Renault. Whats truly mind-blowing is the fact that Sebastian Vettel was able to produce a victorious drive in the treacherous conditions in a Scuderia Toro Rossos STR4. What was even more astonishing was that Vettel was reluctant to make any correlations between himself and Schumacher: However, Vettels record breaking achievement seems to be getting overshadowed by the British press, who simply cannot stop praising Hamilton. I have also noticed that the majority of Lewis Hamiltons fans are British, and there is something fundamentally wrong if the majority of your fans are of the same nationality as you; I mean, does anyone here remember Sanjaya Malakar? Let the games begin!
Hamilton needs to be taken down a few notches. The worst thing about it is that he's british and I live in the UK (most of the time) and the press just never shut up about him. Not just the tabloids but magazines like Autocar - I remember they had a story on the front cover that stated "Schumacher V Hamilton - Who is the greatest?" Seriously, Who are they kidding? Nothing would make me happier than to see Lewis lose the championship again this year.
LH losing the WDC last year, I feel, makes more of a statement about him than anything else ever could. F1 powers that be in his corner, top team focused solely on him, highly competitive car, natural ability, admiration and support of an entire nation and most of the racing world, and he still fell short. And this year is not a runaway for him either...
Better to be thought of as a fool, than it is to open one's mouth and prove them right. Let the driving do the talking. Keep the pie hole zipped. CW
Why do you ask him these questions? You know what he's going to say. I personally don't have an issue with it. Though I would like to see just how great he is in a Honda or another team a bit lower on the cars capabilities. Then his comments would mean more to me. I think he's a good driver, but he was handed a gift being on the Mclaren team.
First of all Jim is the messenger, he is only posting someone else's words. Don't shoot the messenger. Second, I have never read all of Hamilton's quotes all in one place. This particular article did miss the "moral right" to the WDC comment of recent. So to see all of this in one place did cause me to raise my eyebrows with amazement. Does this mean I was wrong, that Hamilton's words really are those of an arrogant wanker and not some kid that has not quite grown up yet? I keep hoping that if one reads between the lines, the black and white of print, that one can say that Hamilton is just being honest with his feelings in a childish immature way. That he really is a nice guy. But for him to express these words publically, and with words that make him appear to walk on water, or in this case, motor oil, I am beginning to lean in the direction of wanker. Its either one or the other, immature or an actual wanker. If the words of Hamilton quoted in this ariticle are true and he means them, if you are honest with yourself, there is no in between. I tire of the thinking that he is only expressing self confidence, give me a break, he can do that without appearing self absorbed. He has won no F1 championship as of yet. When he does, he can be self congratulatory. I believe most people like their champions to have humility. Until then he needs to just shut up and perform. I apologize to my British friends, but I hope Hamilton loses the WDC, now and always, he does not "morally deserve" it as he has been quoted to suggest. Because to me if he is serious with his words, he truly is a wanker. I would question why you would think differently.
Hamilton is pretty damn arrogant, but I think he has provided 30% of the overtaking this year, so at least he has a reason to be arrogant.
I often enjoy to see hamilton racing (when he doesnt push others of the track....), but i dont like how cocky he is and what he says.
Newsflash! This just in... F1 Driver has a big ego and thinks he's a great driver! Fans gasp in disbelief!
No, it's more like, F1 driver has a big ego and thinks he's the greatest of all drivers and is stupid enough to tell the press. He's an cocky little s*** and I'll be cheering against him for all his career.
Lewis is an arrogant smug driver who thinks he is God's gift to Formula One and the world. I used to like him as a driver but about 5 races in last year his ego jumped up about 5 levels to the point he seems to be a ****head. The rest of the F1 drivers combined don't have half the ego of Lewis. A driver comparing themselves to Michael Schumacher is like a Christian comparing themselves to Jesus.
LMAO.... He also ate my HAMSTER. BOO HOO!! I suggest you lot whining watch another sport like crown green bowling.
Let us know where you find the quote of him saying he's the "greatest of all drivers"... after all, I wouldn't want to think you applied that label yourself or anything
Are you going to go through life pissed off like this? Not good!! BTW, has anyone else noticed how so many posters from this side of the pond are going off on LH? Must be due to the Wall St and RE meltdown.