38-year-old Lewis Hamilton stands as one of the older drivers on the grid. Usually, he is seen around the paddock with people in his age group, including Vettel, Bottas, and Wolff. However, before the Japan GP, the Briton spent some time with Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, doing an activity that turned back the clock for him.
In a callback, X User Deni posted a snippet of Hamilton’s interview where he addressed him and Ocon racing RC cars in the pit lane. Growing up, Hamilton was an RC Car enthusiast and a champion on the local circuit. A 7-year-old Hamilton even featured on BBC’s Blue Peter TV Show, where he raced his RC Car alongside a few others.
Lewis Hamilton struck by nostalgia during an activity with Esteban Ocon
Ahead of the Japanese GP weekend, the drivers spent time on the circuit, familiarizing themselves with the atmosphere. While here, Esteban Ocon and Lewis Hamilton engaged in a friendly competition involving RC cars, which they planned well in advance, as quoted by X user Deni.
Not only did it help the drivers loosen up a little, but it was also a happy callback for Hamilton to his childhood days.
“Esteban and I had planned a while ago that while we’re here we’d get our remote control cars together and have a bit of a race in the pit lane. For me, it was very reminiscent of when I was a kid on Blue Peter and it was really cool.”
Hamilton added it was a special moment for him as it allowed him to get to know the younger driver better. He admitted to the possibility of there being more in common among the drivers on the grid than they probably think. It also allowed the drivers to engage in an activity that’s not often seen in the pit lanes.
RC racing paved the way for Hamilton’s motorsporting dreams
Hamilton got into RC car racing as a 6-year-old. The more he raced the miniature cars, the more he got enchanted by the world of motorsports. Two years later, Hamilton started racing in the Karting circuits and became an instant prodigy. Being the only black youngster on the circuit, Hamilton was often on the receiving end of some harsh comments, but his father taught him not to respond with words but by out-driving them during the races.
A focused Hamilton soon caught the attention of several big names from the Formula racing world, with the then McLaren Tech Team Lead, Ron Dennis, coming out on track to present Hamilton with his winner’s trophy after a race. Not only did Hamilton ask for Dennis’ autograph but he also asked him to write down his phone no. and address for future use.
Inevitably, Hamilton made his F1 debut with McLaren, while Dennis was still a part of the structure, and the rest is history.
