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Lewis Hamilton says his team-mate Valtteri Bottas is “an incredibly fast driver” that “doesn’t get the credit he’s due, because he does an amazing job.”
Hamilton and Bottas have maintained a very respectful and harmonious relationship ever since the Finn joined Mercedes back in 2017. The Briton has never shied away from praising his team-mate and now again defends him from his detractors.
“Valtteri doesn’t get the credit he’s due because he does an amazing job,” said Hamilton to Ziggo Sport.
“He’s an incredibly fast driver. I think he’s better than a large portion of the field that are here, not only in his driving, but more in his mental attitude and approach.
“Because being a driver is not just about driving, it’s not just about practice. It’s about how you compose, how you bring and elevate people around you and he’s great at that.”
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Although Hamilton usually manages to beat the Finn in the race, in qualifying Bottas proved to be a formidable foe.
“When I look back on those times, they were too close. They weren’t good enough because I believe that I have a certain amount of extra time in me,” the six-time champion continued.
“But it’s honestly just never giving up, never believing it’s over. It’s down to feel, pushing to the limit and trying to put all the pieces to the puzzle together in a rush.
“When you go into practice, you’ve basically got a new puzzle and the pieces are all over the place and you only have a select amount of time to put all the pieces of the puzzle into place.
“When you get to qualifying, sometimes you have half the puzzle done, sometimes you have the whole thing done, sometimes you have less. And then you just have to throw it all together and hope it comes together.
“And I’m okay at both,” concluded Hamilton.
