SILVERSTONE, England – Lewis Hamilton admitted that he was struggling to hold back the emotions after claiming his ninth British Grand Prix victory, his first F1 win since November 2021.
Hamilton’s 104th career win was a long time coming and saw him manage a topsy-turvy race affected by scattered rain showers.
After the finish, the F1 feed played a radio message from Hamilton as his voice cracked with emotion.
The TV broadcast also showed him in a long embrace with father Anthony.
“Yeah, I can’t stop crying,” Hamilton said. “It’s been since 2021, I just every day, getting up, trying to fight, to train, to put my mind to the task, and work as hard as I can with this amazing team. And this is my last race here at the British Grand Prix with this team.
“So I wanted to win this so much for them, because I love them, I appreciate them so much, all the hard work they’ve been putting in all over these years. I’m forever grateful to everyone in this team, everyone at Mercedes, and all of our partners. And otherwise, to all our incredible fans, I could see you lap-by-lap as I was coming around. There’s just no greater feeling as to finish at the front here.”
Anthony Hamilton told Sky Sports: “How crazy was that? He was never going to give that up. You just have to watch the times, it was a tenth here, a tenth there, it didn’t matter what was happening. Lewis was in full control.
“There’s no way with that current car and the tyres he had that he was going to allow that win to slip in front of the British public. And that’s what drove him on.
“Lewis was second yesterday and he was disappointed with himself, he was like: ‘I could have done better’ after qualifying.
“So he goes home, refocuses and comes back and you know that he’s calculated everything and he’s waiting for the environment to change, and when the environment changes, he’s in his element.
“It’s great for the team, it’s great for the British crowd … and it’s great for motorsport.”
Hamilton’s run without a win stretched back to the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
He had seen teammate George Russell win twice in the time since, including at the Austrian Grand Prix seven days ago.
When asked how he put a brave face on things, Lewis Hamilton said: “It’s so tough, I think for anyone. But I think the important thing is just how you continue to get up.
“You’ve got to continue to dig deep even when you feel you’re at the bottom of the barrel. There have definitely been days between 2021 and here where I didn’t feel like I was good enough or whether I was going to get back to where I am today.
“But the important thing is I had great people around me, continuing to support me and my team, seeing them put in the effort, that really encouraged me to do the same thing.
“And otherwise my fans, when I see them around the world, they have been so supportive. So a big, big thank you to everybody back at the factory, everybody here, I love you guys, and god bless you.”
