David Coulthard believes that it’s easier for Lewis Hamilton to move on from the Abu Dhabi title loss in comparison to Toto Wolff.
A significant section of F1 fans feels a massive injustice happened with Lewis Hamilton on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix night. According to them. The Briton was snubbed from his eighth world title.
Thus they believe that Hamilton is avoiding his association from F1 after the 2021 season betrayal. These speculations have also led to murmurs of his retirement.
However, David Coulthard believes that Hamilton isn’t giving too much mind to his title defeat. Instead, he thinks it will take Mercedes boss Toto Wolff more time to recover than Hamilton.
Nine years. One @LewisHamilton 🖤💜 pic.twitter.com/kgDLSSumsQ
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) January 24, 2022
“I think he will be bored with everyone saying to him, ‘You were robbed, Lewis!’, or, ‘You’re the people’s champion, Lewis!'” Coulthard told the UK’s Telegraph. “He’ll be avoiding even having those conversations.”
Lewis Hamilton will return
According to Coulthard, Hamilton will return to F1 in the upcoming season, despite the rumours of his exit from the sport. He thinks that his compatriot isn’t necessarily still shocked with the last season’s results.
“The big decision was when he committed to that new two-year [Mercedes] contract midway through last season,” he said.
“I don’t think Abu Dhabi changes anything. Of course, he would have liked to have won. I think he was very emotional, as anyone would be under the circumstances.
“But I think the reality is the shock was probably far less for him than it would have been for Toto, or the rest of the team, or his fans,” he added.
Having numerous years of experience in F1 himself, Coulthard believes that the emotions of battles quickly wear off. Thus, considering Hamilton to be an even more successful driver than him, he expects the seven-time world champion to bounce back.
“I can’t compare myself to Lewis in terms of success or speed but one thing I think I can relate to is that emotional detachment, once the moment’s gone,” he explained.
“The euphoria of success wears off quite quickly, and the disappointment of defeat wears off quite quickly as well.”
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