After 12 stellar seasons as a Mercedes Formula 1 driver, Britain’s Lewis Hamilton is gearing up for his first race in red, having signed a multi-year contract with Italian giants Ferrari.
The build-up has been nothing short of electric — the anticipation, the hype, the dream-like narrative of Formula 1’s most decorated driver joining the sport’s most legendary team. But beneath the fairytale exterior lies an undeniable force: pressure.
When asked about it during Thursday’s press conference ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton remained unfazed.
“I am under no assumptions it will be easy. I don’t feel the pressure. The outside pressure is non-existent for me. The pressure is from within and what I want to achieve,” he said.
“I am not here to prove anything to anybody. I have done it time and time again. I know what it takes to do a good job and that’s what I want to deliver, for myself, and my family, for this team that I really believe deserve success.
“They are so driven and maybe they have not had as much success as they would like and deserve. Just want to work towards and contribute to doing it.”
Hamilton said he was still getting to grips with the team and car.
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“I am still learning this new car, which is quite a lot different to what I have driven all through my career,” Hamilton said. “Ferrari power, after all my career with Mercedes, is a different feel, different vibration.
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