F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Brawn: Dominant Hamilton at 'pinnacle of career' in F1

Ross Brawn says there are no signs of Lewis Hamilton's dominance in F1 tailing off, insisting the newly crowned seven-time world champion is currently at the "pinnacle of his career"

Hamilton's outstanding win in Sunday's Turkish Grand Prix allowed the Mercedes driver to add a 94th win to his track record and to secure the 2020 title with three races to spare.

Hamilton's seventh crown puts him on equal footing in the history books with Michael Schumacher. And like the great German, who conquered five of his championships under Brawn's guidance, Hamilton has made the most of his "God given talent".

"In Turkey, despite his Mercedes team struggling for pace all weekend on a slippery surface in cold conditions, he stayed patient in the race, strategized and pushed when needed to," Brawn said in his Monday debrief of Sunday's round at Istanbul Park.

"He got the tyres working when no one else could. It was the perfect demonstration of what he is – a seven-time world champion, equaling Michael’s record.

"It’s the kind of dominance that in most people’s motorsport career, you only see once. I’ve been blessed to see it twice.

"I have been fortunate to work with both Lewis and Michael. They are different characters, which is wonderful as you don’t want metronomic characters in F1.

"Lewis is different to Michael in the way they approach things. At the core of it, they both have a God given talent."

Brawn admits that chinks in Hamilton's armour are few and far between, and whenever a relative weakness does surface, the Briton can count on his team to alleviate its effects.

"It’s hard to pick a weakness in his Lewis’ armoury," added the F1 boss. "He sometimes seems to get emotional on the radio but the team know how to handle that through the calmness of his engineer Pete Bonnington.

"Bono doesn’t get fazed by anything Lewis says and has a great riposte when he gets too excited. Everyone in that team works so well together.

©Mercedes

"Sunday wasn’t an easy win. He didn’t put the car on pole and disappear into the distance. It was a challenging weekend for him, regarding the weather, the conditions and the track.

"Clearly, it didn’t initially suit Mercedes but they got their head down and thought about it. He came from further down the grid today. He wins when he’s not given any opposition and he wins when he is given a big challenge.

"Right now, he’s at the pinnacle of his career. And I don’t know where his form will start to tail off."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.

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