Lewis Hamilton's rocky relationship with F1 legend revealed

Lewis Hamilton has shared the rocky beginnings of his relationship with F1 legend Niki Lauda, and how the pair became close over the course of his Mercedes career.

Lauda won three F1 championships in 1975, 1977 and 1984 with Ferrari and then McLaren; but during the latter stages of his life the Austrian was known for his work with Mercedes.

The champion joined Mercedes as a non-executive chairman in 2012 and was an instrumental figure in negotiating Hamilton’s deal with the team, joining the German squad in 2013.

Since Lauda passed away in 2019, Hamilton has shared fond memories from his time with the legend, whom he built a strong friendship with over his title winning career at Mercedes, recently emulating the Austrian with his move to Ferrari this year.

In a recent conversation with Ferrari Magazine, Hamilton revealed the influence Lauda had over him and how the foundations of their relationship were a little rocky.

Hamilton reflects on Lauda

According to Hamilton in a previous interview, Lauda tried to convince Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff to ban the champion from attending fashion parties, and the Brit admitted the legend struggled to adapt to him being different.

“When I got to F1, Niki was part of a world that couldn’t adapt to me being different, and I heard negative things, though I’d always had an admiration for him as a three-time world champion,” Hamilton reflected honestly.

“He’s one of the true icons of our sport. Then he’s on the phone telling me why I should come to the team [Mercedes], and then when we finally met we had a really good conversation. He said, ‘You’re just like me, you’re a racer to the core.’

“It wasn’t until we had that meeting that those barriers came down, that the stereotyped view he may have had was dealt with. After that we would travel to races together and he’d fly us places all the time.”

When asked if Hamilton educated Lauda, the champion emphasised the influence the Austrian had on himself and just how close the pair became towards the end of his life.

“I think we educated each other. He had the best stories, and we used to laugh so much together,” Hamilton added.

“And he was a fighter, literally until his last breath. It was unbelievable for me to see how hard he fought. We’d send video messages to each other, and right to the end he was fighting, saying ‘I’m coming back…’ I loved him for that.”

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