“He needs to harden himself up again”: Ex F1 team boss feels Lewis Hamilton has been too nice with his approach which lost him the World Title to Max Verstappen

Former F1 team boss turned analyst Eddie Jordan calls for Lewis Hamilton to be more aggressive with his approach moving forward.

Eddie Jordan was the owner and founder of Jordan Grand Prix, an F1 team that competed in the sport from 1991-2005. After last week’s controversial conclusion to the Abu Dhabi GP, Jordan shared his thoughts about Lewis Hamilton. He feels that Hamilton has been ‘too nice for too long’.

The Briton lost out on his 8th World Championship after Max Verstappen overtook him on the race’s final lap to snatch it away. Jordan said that Hamilton allowed an ‘arrogant and aggressive’ Verstappen to steal the title away from him.

Wonderfully generous and dignified reaction from @LewisHamilton. He really is very special, on the track, and off it. Class act to the end.

— Gary Lineker 💙 (@GaryLineker) December 12, 2021

“You can’t deny Verstappen the right to the championship.” said Jordan in an interview with BBC. “However, on the other side, I think Hamilton has opened the door.”

“He’s allowed someone as aggressive and arrogant as Verstappen to upset him and steal his title from him. I think Lewis has been too nice for too long and I think he needs to harden himself up again.”

Also read: Max Verstappen admits that a part of him felt sorry for Lewis Hamilton after he won the World Championship

“Lewis Hamilton has become nice, nice guys don’t win titles”

Hamilton is a 7-time World Champion and has dominated the sport since his move from McLaren to Mercedes in 2012. He won 6 of the 7 World Titles between 2014 and 2020, losing out on the subsequent one on the very last lap of the season.

Eddie Jordan commented on Hamilton’s body language after the race. “For me, it’s his body language. Listen to the way he spoke afterwards; he was so sporting.” said the 73-year-old.

Lewis 🤝 Max

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“All of Britain can be so proud of what he’s doing. But nice guys don’t win titles, and he’s become a nice guy.”

“He’s the best driver I’ve ever seen and I’ve seen some really top drivers in my time, so for me to say that I’m really putting him on a pedestal.” he concluded.

Hamilton ended the season on 2nd behind Verstappen. He is contracted to drive for Mercedes until 2023 when he will be 39 years old, but his future in F1 beyond that remains uncertain.

Also read: Ex F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone says Mercedes will look like ‘bad losers’ if they go ahead with their appeal