Lewis Hamilton said it would be “neat” to swap roles with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and be the boss for a day, while he picked Ayrton Senna’s MP4/4 F1 car, not one of his own, as the best he has driven.
Hamilton and Mercedes have become synonymous with each other in the world of Formula 1, having unleashed a record-breaking era of success together between 2014-21, in which time Hamilton won six Drivers’ titles and Mercedes eight Constructors’ crowns in a row.
Both Hamilton and Mercedes boss Wolff came on board at the same time in 2013, building a strong relationship since, with Hamilton fancying a day walking in Wolff’s shoes.
Lewis Hamilton would like to be Mercedes boss for a daySpeaking in a Mercedes video, in which he answered fan questions while surrounded by rescue dogs with fascinating stories to tell, Hamilton was asked which member of the Mercedes team he would like to swap roles with for a day?
Hamilton likes the idea of “bossing everyone around” for the day, so would like to take on Wolff’s team principal duties.
“I’d probably say Toto because he’s the boss,” said Hamilton.
“Being the boss for the day would be kind of neat. Boss everyone around.”
Hamilton has had the chance to drive some of Formula 1’s greatest cars during his illustrious career, but when it came to picking his favourite, it was not any of his title-winning Mercedes, or the McLaren MP4-23 that took him to his first title in 2008, which Hamilton settled on.
Instead, it was a different McLaren, Senna’s dominant MP4/4 which he drove to his first title in 1988, McLaren winning all but one race that season.
And Hamilton got the chance to take the wheel of the MP4/4 in 2009, as part of a segment for TV show ‘Top Gear’.
“Probably my favourite one was driving Ayrton Senna’s MP4/4,” Hamilton declared.
With seven World Championships won, a record he shares with Michael Schumacher, while holding outright records such as most wins, poles and podiums, Hamilton statistically is the most successful F1 driver of all time.
But simply making it to Formula 1, and seeing his father from the podium when he won his first race, the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, were the moments Hamilton picks as his career highlights.
“One of my favourite moments was just getting to Formula 1,” he said. “We couldn’t believe it, there were so many dark and tough moments where we really thought that it was it and it was not going to happen, and we just never gave up.
“Seeing my dad, when I won my first race in Montreal, looking down at him on the podium, was so validating to know that all the late nights, the travelling that we did, the adversity that we faced, just felt like it was all worthwhile.”
There is still a major piece of F1 history for Hamilton to potentially re-write though, as he heads into F1 2024 chasing a record-breaking eighth World Championship.
