Former Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas revealed his ex-teammate Lewis Hamilton’s biggest strength amidst retirement rumours surrounding the latter, stating that his resilience was second to none.
Bottas spent five years as Hamilton’s teammate, with the pairing being hailed as one of the best in the sport’s history. The association was key in winning five consecutive Constructors’ Championships, as well as Hamilton winning four Drivers’ titles.
With the seven-time world champion’s future up in the air following a controversial ordeal at the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP, Mercedes are at crossroads with regards to the upcoming season. The Finn may have left Mercedes, but he took the opportunity to hail his former teammate.
Bottas revealed Hamilton’s biggest strength amidst the retirement rumours, saying that the ‘Still I Rise’ slogan was something he strived to live up to every single year.
“You know, with Lewis, what has been really impressive is that every year he’s been able to develop,” the 10-time race winner told the official F1 website, as quoted by f1i.com.
“He’s got such a big experience in Formula 1, but still he’s been able to always learn more, become better and better. For sure, I’ve developed every year as a driver, but so has Lewis, and it doesn’t come automatically. He works for it, because he knows that the competition always gets tougher.”
Lots of takeaways
“I’ve definitely learned many things from him, like driving-wise, set-up-wise, lots of small things here and there,” the current Alfa Romeo driver continued.
“But just it’s been impressive that he’s been able to still develop and not to get too comfortable, ever.
“He always wants more out of himself and the team around him, so that’s been the same thing every year – he keeps getting better.”
Read more: Bottas responds to rumours of him leaving F1 – “Had quite a long time to process things”