IT'S been a long time since we’ve featured sports personalities as our digital envelopes.
So, when contacted by the media relations representative of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS), the main sponsor of the Mercedes AMG F1 team, to interview seven-time Formula One (F1) world champion Lewis Hamilton and his teammate Valtteri Bottas, we welcomed it with joy.
Coincidentally, before that, we were looking for a suitable personality to be the latest face of TARA. Like a sleepy person pushed by a PETRONAS invitation pillow, it came just in time.
Just so you know, when else can we feature international stars as digital envelope decorators in this pandemic situation?
In fact, PETRONAS was also willing to provide a special photo featuring Hamilton and Bottas in one picture for us to make a digital envelope this time.
In addition, we were also given the opportunity to interview these two famous F1 racers exclusively. Even though it was just a virtual meeting, the opportunity to chat with these athletes did not come easily.
What's more, we wanted to know their feelings ahead of the sixth F1 race of the season at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix (GP), which will take place at the Baku circuit on June 6, 2021.
This time, Hamilton is in a strange position after having dominated this high-performance sport.
Despite winning three of the five races this season, Hamilton is four points behind Red Bull's Max Verstappen, after only being able to finish the Monaco GP two weeks ago in seventh place.
The Briton admits that he has little room for error if he wants to win his eighth world championship.
“Before this, we had a machine that had an advantage over other teams. But this season, the Red Bull team has a package that can win a world championship. If we are careless, the world championship belongs to them,” he said from Baku in the interview done online.
Despite being in second place, this season has seen the 36-year-old break several F1 records.
Hamilton holds the record for most wins with 98, achieved at the Portuguese GP early last month. He also tops the chart for most pole positions with 100, achieved at the Spanish GP at the end of last month.
If he manages to win his eighth title at the end of the season, he will replace the legendary driver from Germany, Michael Schumacher, as the one with the most F1 championship titles.
With all the achievements, how does he maintain his hunger to continue to compete and win at the top four-wheel racing stage?
“I never think about all the records. I just love working with a very committed team. My relationship with them, especially in going through the journey together from the beginning to the end of the season, is invaluable.
"The challenges we experienced, like in the Monaco GP, are examples of things that brings us closer in thinking about how to overcome them. I also like what I do and I am an excellent driver,” he said.
The current era of F1 has a racing grid that is filled with young riders such as the 23-year-old world championship leader Verstappen.
In the top five of the world championships, only Hamilton is in his mid-30s. So naturally, the question of when he will retire inevitably arises.
Hamilton replied that he himself does not yet know when he would retire, and added that the Covid-19 pandemic has also played a role in extending his career.
"I'm enjoying the competition and challenges I'm facing this season, and physically, I feel fit. If the Covid-19 pandemic hadn’t hit, I'm sure my workload would have been higher and everything would have moved at a faster pace, and that would have certainly shortened my career.
"I don't see why we need to stop doing something we love, especially if we always find new challenges. I also feel that my performance improves every year, but if that changes, then I will retire,” he added.
We were very pleased with Hamilton’s persona, which was so friendly during the interview.
“I am always happy to talk to you all because I am rarely interviewed by a group of journalists from different races. I really appreciate that, especially when our skin colour is almost the same,” he joked, ending the conversation.
Hamilton's teammate Bottas hopes his fate will be different from what happened at the Monaco GP.
There, during a routine pit stop, one of the tyres could not be removed, which forced him to withdraw, thus being unable to collect any points.
"Yes, it's a big disappointment for me because I failed to collect points, especially against Red Bull in the manufacturer's competition. Issues like this are beyond my control.
“What's important is to look back at the mistakes made during the race and try to keep competing.
“But I admit I was disappointed for two days after the race, but after, I open a new page because we can only look towards the future,” he said.
Bottas also shared the hope that the issue of his tyres has been resolved.
“We have analysed in detail the damage, and the team has repaired my machinery in the short time we had, so that it does not happen again. Hopefully, it doesn't again. I am confident the improvements we have made will solve that problem."
This season, the results of the Finnish rider has been topsy-turvy, his podium finish coupled with failure to finish a race, as it happened in Monaco.
But he is confident of his ability with Mercedes-Benz, the United Kingdom-based German brand team, to bounce back despite the challenges from other teams.
"The competition this season is very stiff, Red Bull have proven they have a great package. The Monaco GP also showed that Ferrari can play a role in this season's competition. Small mistakes can have consequences for us.
"Overall, our team has displayed good performances, but are not perfect yet. I failed to finish in two of the last four races.
"That is not ideal, but there are still many more races to come this season. So, we have to learn from our mistakes and keep competing. With that, I believe we can do it, ”he added.
The 31-year-old has been with Mercedes F1 for five years and played a major role in the team's success in winning four of the seven manufacturer's championships. Bottas said that every time the team becomes champions, it gets harder to repeat it.
"The teams that chase will be highly motivated to beat us. A team that always wins is also at risk of being complacent. For us, it’s very important to work together and set goals that we try to achieve together.
“We also do not focus on any specific team or individual. We prefer to pay attention to our own goals. I believe this is the key to our success."
Baku is a very challenging street circuit, in contrast to Monaco. Changes in racing style and thought patterns are needed to ensure success here.
Bottas said that his approach to racing on this circuit is very different because of the high risk involved, as making small mistakes may have a negative impact on race week.
“So, I have to take steps to improve my performance little by little from the first training session to the first lap of the race. I can’t keep looking for limits, so I have to build momentum and confidence when taking turns. Otherwise, mistakes will happen.
"It's about adapting to the track conditions and reaching the pinnacle of my performance in the qualifying session, and then seeing what can be achieved," he added further.
The Azerbaijan GP qualifying session will take place at 7.30pm today, and will be followed tomorrow with the main race at 7pm.
We hope that both of them will achieve success in this race as well, and raise the country's proud brand, PETRONAS. – The Vibes, June 5, 2021
