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Home , Lewis Hamilton

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2018 16 Raikkonen happy to prove doubters wrong

AFP | Austin, United States guys next to me -- they’re not fighting for a championship so I imi Raikkonen insists he had to be very, very careful how has no plans for a spe - I navigated around them,” he Kcial celebration after he I might be getting explained. “proved some people wrong” by older, but it’s not too “Championships are not won winning Sunday’s United States bad still. Maybe I’m by fighting and making silly mis- Grand Prix. ok to be around a few takes.” The Finn, whose victory for Hamilton made several efforts a resurgent Ferrari prevented years more. I enjoy to pass Verstappen in the closing Lewis Hamilton from clinching it, so we are here to laps, but was unable to find a his fifth drivers’ title in Texas, is try to win. I always way past him. leaving the Italian team at the try to do it, but “I gave him way too much end of the season and, at the age obviously it’s not easy space just to be sure that I didn’t of 39, had been written off in otherwise anybody get clipped, for example, and some quarters. could do it. I think didn’t get taken out,” he said, But he never lost self-belief adding that he feared the Dutch- and made the most of his chance this weekend we have man may understeer into him or at the been pretty solid in defend his position with more with a faultless drive and flaw- many ways. I just had aggression. less strategy as his rivals floun- a good feeling with “The key for me was that I dered around him. the car finished ahead of Seb and for It was his first win in more me it doesn’t matter when KIMI RAIKKONEN than five years and 113 races dat- Lewis Hamilton climbs out of his Mercedes car as Kimi Raikkonen is congratulated by Ferrari fans you win the championship ing back to the 2013 Australian as long as you get it done,” Grand Prix – and his first win he said. for Ferrari since 2009. “I might be getting older, but the car.” “The kids probably fell asleep had let him down with a poor “Ultimately, we wanted to win He returns to Sauber, where it’s not too bad still. Maybe I’m The laconic racer added that during the race, but the wife choice of tyres and strategy. the race today and I think going he started his career in 2001, on ok to be around a few years his young children were unlikely probably looked at it. I’m more He also pointed out that it was backwards two steps is not a a two-year contract next season. more. to be too excited. than happy for all of us. It’s nice.” difficult to pass second placed good result, but you can’t win “I’m happy for that,” he said. “I enjoy it, so we are here to try “They’ve been asking for a As a near-deadpan Raikkonen and the victo- them all.” “It was a great day to prove some to win. I always try to do it, but while, but they’re more interest- smiled, Hamilton, who failed to rious Raikkonen to deliver his Hamilton will become only people wrong and have a good obviously it’s not easy otherwise ed in the cap than proba- outscore fourth-placed Sebas- sixth win in seven visits to Texas. the third five-time champion race, but it doesn’t really change anybody could do it. bly a win itself,” he said. tian Vettel by eight points, the in the sport if Vettel wins and anything for me. “I think this weekend we have “I know that we can buy it tally needed to seal the world Too much space he finishes in the top seven in “It’s just a . Life goes been pretty solid in many ways. also, but I know it’s not fair play title, conceded that Mercedes “Honestly, I was trying to win Mexico next weekend or if Vettel on…. I just had a good feeling with to bring them if I had to buy it… near-metronomic consistency the race, but you look at the two fails to win.

Vettel: Ferrari too slow to recognise mistakes We made it hard for ourselves, says Hamilton

AFP | Austin, United States

ewis Hamilton said LMercedes made life difficult for themselves with a cautious race strategy in Sunday’s . The 33-year-old Briton, who finished third, but missed out spun off the track on the first lap after an incident with on clinching his fifth drivers title, told reporters that he was surprised when he was called AFP | Austin, United States the opening lap. in for an early pit-stop to take Of Ferrari’s victory, he said: advantage of a Virtual Safety ebastian Vettel welcomed “You can see it is good news, Car intervention on lap 11. SFerrari’s return to form in but you can also see it is bad “It was a little bit of a sur - Sunday’s United States Grand news. It took too long. prise,” said the Mercedes man Prix, but said the team had “If we have to go back to a after finishing third. taken too long to realise the car that has been competitive “And once we’d done the stop mistakes in its development three or four months ago, then on 11, I knew I would be doing programme. surely it cannot be good news The four-time champion if you think about it? German, who kept alive his “For us, on the technical faint title hopes by finishing side, it is important to under- fourth behind champion - stand what went wrong….” ship leader Lewis Hamilton He said there was no easy of Mercedes, said the team explanation. KNOW WHAT Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton waves to fans during the United States Grand Prix did not understand what was “Certainly, we felt that the wrong with their upgrades. car was not as strong as it was a two-stop. sure that he started the race on because he had clean air and a Ferrari abandoned their re- before, but if you don’t see “We just made it so hard for the best tyre. better tyre. cent updates and reverted to there is anything wrong, then Lewis Hamilton ourselves. When we came out, I “I think it already started from “It was definitely a lesson older car specifications at the you don’t know that there is finished third, but had to catch Kimi, I caught him, Q2, that tyre was the wrong tyre learned, I think, for us. Per - Circuit of the Americas and something wrong. missed out on clinch- but my tyres were dead. to start on. We knew there was formance-wise, it wasn’t our were rewarded with Kimi Rai- “All the steps that we did, ing his fifth drivers “Then he did his stop and was a big difference in start perfor- greatest weekend, but we’ve had kkonen’s first win for the team they seemed to make sense, title as he was called catching me with fresh tyres -- mance on these different tyres, some incredible weekends this since 2009. but looking back they didn’t. in for an early pit-stop and then I came out, after the yet we fell for something that we year. Vettel’s hopes of a victory Clearly, there was something last stop, and had 12 seconds to already knew was potentially “Still, to get a third, I’m still to reboot his title bid were we missed and we haven’t un- to take advantage of catch up. It just made it so hard not the way forward. grateful, but naturally, starting wrecked when he clashed with derstood, yet, why and where a Virtual for us even to compete today.” “I lost position to Kimi and first and finishing third is never Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull on the error exactly took off.” intervention on lap 11 He added that he was also not then I wasn’t able to keep up a good thing.”