After last season's tight finish, with all the drama that it meant, fans expected Lewis Hamilton to come out this year seeking revenge from the first turn. The stands were waiting to see an unrelenting version of the Englishman filled with a thirst for vengeance against Max Verstappen, but it wasn't so. For Mercedes, the rule change hit them harder than anyone else, while Ferrari took advantage, going from being a mid-pack car to a front-runner. So, while everyone focused on the Verstappen and Leclerc battle, Hamilton suffered, bouncing in the car, massaging his back, and numbing his ego as he watched his teammate finish better than him in the early stages.
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Many thought, myself included, that it would have been more dignified to retire in 2021 after fighting for the championship rather than do it disheveled in a season like the current one. The routine of the early races was always the same: Lewis Hamilton complaining and Toto Wolff (Mercedes team manager) apologizing and promising to improve the car for the next race. And so the initial tests went on, repeating a sadistic loop that seemed unbreakable. Bounce, pain, frustration and apologies.
In the meantime, the FIA focused on Lewis when announcing the ban on wearing earrings, piercings, jewelry, and other metal objects while piloting an F1 car. In Miami, Hamilton raised his voice and showed his protest, managing to lull the requirement to sleep until this race. The truth is that this weekend the British driver has raced without jewels, but not without drama due to the misguided racist comments of the three-time champion of the category and father of Verstappen's partner, Nelson Piquet. Hamilton has been pursued by the paddock all weekend with microphones eager to hear his defense, but he has kept silent.
With all this buildup, Lewis arrived at his circuit, one he knows by heart, which is nothing less than the backyard of his team, and where he has won eight times in the history of the category. And if Silverstone is the cathedral of motorsport, Lewis is undoubtedly the cardinal. He has been there without jewelry, debated, with a car that still gives him the guarantees against his rivals, starring in a racist soap opera, where Lewis has been reborn in front of his fans amid the poor visibility of a rainy track. Today he starts fifth, after a qualifying session where he was a protagonist, but with clear ambitions to climb the podium and, why not, reward his relentless patience with his first victory of the season.
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Ver noticia en El Comercio: DT