Lewis Hamilton or Michael Schumacher?- F1 safety car driver Bernd Maylander reveals who the toughest driver to stay ahead of is

Bernd Maylander has led over 900 laps in F1 history but hasn’t driven for any team in his 22-year-long career. Instead, he has been the safety car driver since the year 2000 and has shared the track with some of the biggest legends in the sport’s history like Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher.

Whenever the safety car is brought out, it is Maylander’s responsibility to maintain the pace and make sure drivers behind him control their speed. The race leader is the one who is immediately behind him, and different drivers approach this situation differently. A lot of people feel that Max Verstappen has always been very aggressive when behind the SC, but Maylander shared his thoughts on who the toughest to deal with is.

LAP 6/52: Lewis Hamilton gets nice and close to say goodbye to the Safety Car 😮 😣 😱 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/aLRHxRqjRD

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 10, 2016

Fans may be surprised to hear that Hamilton made Maylander’s job very difficult at times. According to him, the Brit is always pushing, which is challenging for him to deal with since he’s the one who has to maintain pace.

Also read: Former F1 champion will disburse $1.8 Million if convicted for racism and homophobia against Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton gets very close to the safety car

Maylander described Hamilton as tough to deal with. However, the 51-year-old feels that Schumacher was relatively very calm. On the contrary, he revealed that Valtteri Bottas was very calm and rarely pushed beyond limits when he brought his car out.

“I have to say, sometimes it is quite difficult with Lewis,” he said. “Because, yeah. He’s always pushing, accelerating, braking. He gets very close to the car. Michael was quite calm. But he was also quite tough. Valtteri Bottas, he’s really quite cool behind me. He is always using the same distance. He keeps distance to the safety car.”

 

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Una publicación compartida por F1 Galaxy (@formula1_galaxy)

Maylander went on to insist that Verstappen is also not very hard on him. The Dutchman does not push him as much as Hamilton or Schumacher did.

“Max, I’d have to say as well, he is not really hard pushing me. Nico Rosberg, he was also very quiet behind me, so he was always at the right distance.”

Maylander then went on to talk about another driver who made life hard for him. It was none other than four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel, whom he compared to Hamilton. However, he insists that the latter is the toughest driver he has had to deal with.

Also read: Lewis Hamilton believes Sebastian Vettel will be back just as Nico Hulkenberg

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Basketball Editor Somin Bhattacharjee first discovered the game during the 2014 FIBA World Cup. Not long after, he turned to the NBA and found himself drawn to the Golden State Warriors — right at the start of Stephen Curry’s rise. Over time, the admiration turned into full-blown support for the team, one that continues even as the Curry era approaches its twilight. A true hoophead, Somin also follows EuroLeague basketball closely and enjoys exploring the game beyond the NBA. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. Since 2021, he has penned over 3,000 articles for TheSportsRush, covering everything from breaking news to sharp opinion pieces and detailed exclusives. He thrives on writing about in-game moments and the reactions that make basketball a uniquely emotional sport. Beyond basketball, Somin plays different sports including soccer and remains a passionate fan of Spanish football giants Real Madrid

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