Heikki Kovalainen shared his thoughts on Lewis Hamilton.
Heikki Kovalainen served as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate for two seasons. AOP
Heikki Kovalainen served as a seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton as a teammate at McLaren for two seasons in the 2008-2009 seasons.
Kovalainen recalled TalkSport he could only occasionally meet the challenge Hamilton threw, but on a full-season scale he had to stretch himself to the extreme.
It demanded its taxes, because Kovalainen simply ran out of energy.
– I no longer had enough room in my capacity to meet his times and what he was doing at the Games.
– His level of performance is so high that even for super talents like Max (Verstappen), it requires a lot of effort, concentration and energy. Not everyone can answer that, Kovalainen continued.
Kovalainen was a Hamilton teammate when the British driver won the first World Driving Championship of his career in 2008. According to Kovalainen, everyone in the team immediately saw that Hamilton was very talented and dedicated.
From the start, it is clear that Hamilton would win the world championship one year. According to Finns, Hamilton’s goodness combines talent with work.
However, the start of Hamilton’s season has been difficult and he has not yet fought properly for race wins.
– I think he has been very good at dealing with the setbacks he has had in his life. He is very good at turning things around and coming back stronger.
Lewis Hamilton has won the World Drivers Championship seven times. AOP
Rosberg used every means
One driver who has won a stable inside Hamilton is Nico Rosberg. Rosberg won the 2016 World Championships for Drivers.
However, the battle for the championship went to the forces. Rosberg ended his career at the World Championships.
– I think Rosberg used every means of his toolbox to defeat Lewis and it almost killed him. He said so himself, he would not have been able to do the same next season, otherwise he would have died, Kovalainen said.
Kovalainen throws in another example. He thought Hamilton could make a difference Fernando Alonson downhill.
The duo worked as teammates for the 2007 season at McLaren, after which Alonso continued his journey. Alonso had won two world championships before his McLaren season, but Hamilton was higher in the World Cup points at the end of the season.
Alonso has not celebrated the world championship since the McLaren season.
– After Renault’s championship years (2005-2006), he has always made the wrong move and sometimes I wonder if the surprise of Hamilton’s speed caused it, Kovalainen weighed and continued:
– If this was the crux of the problem, it could break Ron Dennis (McLare’s team manager) and the team, and he had no other place to go. Renault was on a small downhill at the time and he was just trying to make up for the difference and never really succeeded.