With the 2022 Formula 1 Championship not starting how Lewis Hamilton would’ve hoped, the British driver has already faced comments as to whether he should’ve retired from the sport following his 2021 controversial disappointment.
Five months on from the controversy that was the 2021 season finale, the Seven-time World Champion has faced comments from Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, who expressed his opinion that Hamilton “should have stopped last year”.
The comments from Marko, who has aimed digs at Hamilton in the past, came after Max Verstappen lapped the British driver at the recent Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on the Dutchman’s way to victory.
Marko isn’t the only person though to have had recent digs at the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team driver, with 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve questioning whether Hamilton would even “reach the end of the season”.
The British driver has faced quips the majority of his motorsport career, despite his current struggles he remains adamant that he won’t be taking notice of the comments.
“I don’t listen to those silly comments, to be honest.” explained Hamilton
“Ultimately, I mean, there’s a… it’s been interesting to see there’s quite a lot of disrespectful comments that I’ve seen over time, but it’s to be expected.
“And yeah, I just keep my head down. I know who I am. I know what I do. I love what I do.
“Going through a tough time. We didn’t come out of the starting blocks the way we wanted, but we are fighters. And if you don’t know that about me, you just don’t know me and that’s totally fine.
“I’ll be doing my best to huddle up and group up with the team and fight as hard as we can.”
Despite the tough start to the season, Hamilton has remained upbeat that him and the team will work their way back to the top no matter what people have to say.
“I tried to ignore the negative I see. I’m not really watching the news a lot, but there’s so many inspiring characters out there. And I think just continuously proving you never give up, you keep pushing.
“And I love working with this team. Being in a team is such a privilege and working with so many people towards a common goal. And everyone lifted each other up.
“I’ve had amazing conversations with my team-mates in this past week. Incredible how supportive everyone has been through the difficult times, and then we’ve had the most incredible times together.
“So, you know, a couple of bad races won’t stop us in our tracks. This is where we unite. This is where we learn more about ourselves as individuals. This is where we grow the most.
“And it makes that eventual success – which I have no doubts we will eventually get to – taste even better.”