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Lewis Hamilton says there is no bad blood between him and Max Verstappen and adds they are both “ruthless” on the track, “but hopefully with a bit of compassion”.
In an exclusive interview that will be broadcast on Sky Sports F1 during the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend, Lewis Hamilton was asked about his relationship with Max Verstappen after the controversial finish of the 2021 season.
“Me and Max, we see each other in the paddock, and things are normal,” Hamilton said.
“We’re two individual drivers. We have a lot of common in a sense of how much we love doing what we do and driving, then on the other side we’re ruthless. He is ruthless, I am.
“That’s what you have to be in, I would imagine business, but hopefully with a bit of compassion.
“We are fighters out there, there’s no friends on track. It’s like when you go skiing, there’s no friends out there.”
Regarding their on-track clashes that often ended up in a crash, Lewis said it’s ‘all part of the game’, but it’s important to “keep respect”.
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“Some days we get it right, sometimes we get it wrong. But I think what’s really important is that we’re human beings and that we do keep respect.”
Lewis also gave his comments on what he encountered on social media during the hard-fought 2021 season.
“Of course there’s so many nice comments and then there’s trolling, all these different things that people experience.
“If I had sat and read all the comments after Silverstone – the racial abuse – I could have downward spiralled to a negative place. I just don’t let that volatile medium control my life.
“You’ve got to be careful because obviously the way the media try to hype up the drama also creates a narrative for fans,” concluded the Briton.
