Lewis Hamilton says outside pressure ‘nonexistent’ before F1 Ferrari debut
Lewis Hamilton has insisted he has nothing to prove and feels no pressure going into his first race for Ferrari at the Formula One season opener in Melbourne this weekend, with the seven-time champion simply revelling in what he described as the most exciting period of an already long and storied career.Hamilton, who made his F1 debut in 2007 and is now entering his 19th season in the sport, will make his debut with Ferrari at Albert Park after six years at McLaren and then 12 at Mercedes.Driving for the Scuderia had long been a childhood dream for the British driver and the interest in his switch to racing for the sport’s most famous and most successful marque has already been intense, reaching an apogee in the buildup to the opening meeting in Albert Park.Hamilton, speaking before the teams take to the track for the first time on Friday in Melbourne, conceded he was aware the task facing him in adapting to a new team at 40 and coming up to speed in no short order was considerable.But he felt confident in his ability to deliver.
“I’m under no assumptions that it will be easy, it is not,” he said,“But I don’t feel the pressure,The outside pressure, it’s nonexistent for me,The pressure is from within and what I want to achieve,I’m not here to prove anything to anybody, I don’t feel I have to do anything.
“I’ve been [in F1] a long, long time and done it time and time again,” he said,“I know what it takes to do a good job and that’s what I want to deliver for myself and for my family, for this team that I really believe deserve success,”Ferrari have not won the drivers’ championship since 2007 and the constructors’ title since 2008, but finished second in the latter last season to McLaren and closed out 2024 with a car very much at the sharp end of the grid,Expectations are that it will be competitive once again this season and Hamilton and his teammate, Charles Leclerc, will be able to challenge for wins,Hamilton was cautiously optimistic after pre-season testing but guarded as to how Ferrari stood in relation to the rest of the field, form that will only really be demonstrated in Saturday’s qualifying at Albert Park.
He was, however, in upbeat, buoyant mood in Melbourne, reinvigorated and motivated for the task ahead with Ferrari after three seasons struggling with a recalcitrant Mercedes,“I’m itching to get going,” he said,“This is the most exciting period of my life and so I’m really just enjoying it, I’m so excited to get in the car tomorrow,”When Hamilton made his debut in Australia in 2007 he was only 22,Now, starting a new era in his career, he looked back on how much had changed and why his experience gave him confidence he could make a success of it with the Scuderia.
Sign up to The RecapThe best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend’s actionafter newsletter promotion“When I was 22 years old, I wasn’t obviously mature, I didn’t have a lot of foundation around me,It was my dad and my step-mum was booking my flights to come out here,” he said,“They’re here this weekend, so it’s been a long journey with them but I didn’t have any help with prepping for something like this,It was just deep end everywhere and I drowned many times,“Now, obviously I’m very comfortable in my skin.
I know who I am, I know where I’m going.I know what energy and time and effort I need to put in to get there.Obviously when I was 22 I didn’t know that, but what a rollercoaster ride it’s been up until now.”Separately on Thursday, F1 announced that its president and chief executive, Stefano Domenicali, would continue in his role until the end of 2029.Domenicali took on the role in 2021 and has since overseen the sport’s remarkable growth in popularity, its expansion in terms of fans and races and the financial stabilisation of the costs of competing, leading to a surge in value of the teams.
Domenicali’s tenure has been well received within the sport, with his range of experience putting him in a strong position to understand the differing perspectives involved,He was the team principal at Ferrari between 2008 and 2013, then joined the commercial wing of Audi for two years before becoming chair and CEO at Lamborghini,
Ex-Barclays boss claims his marriage is at risk after admitting in court to sex with Epstein employee
The former bank boss Jes Staley has claimed his honesty in court has “put my marriage at risk” after his lawyer complained that forcing him to disclose he had sex with a member of Jeffrey Epstein’s staff had resulted in “public humiliation”.The ex-Barclays chief executive capped off three and a half days of cross-examination by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) by suggesting his willingness to endure scrutiny showed he had no interest in misleading the regulator, which alleges he lied about the depth of his relationship with Epstein.Staley is trying to overturn the FCA’s 2023 ruling that led to a lifetime ban from the City and the loss of £18m in pay and bonuses from Barclays.Speaking at the Upper Tribunal in London on Thursday, he said: “On my own costs, I crossed the Atlantic to be in the tribunal to be open and honest. I could have stayed at home
UK food and drink exports to the EU down 34% since Brexit
British food and drink exports to the EU have tumbled by more than a third since Brexit, according to new trade body figures highlighting how bureaucratic barriers have changed the relationship between the UK and its most important trading partner.Products including whisky, chocolate and cheese remain popular with EU customers but overall food export volumes to the bloc fell to 6.37bn kg in 2024, representing a 34% decline compared with 2019 levels, the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) found.While some of the fall in exports since the UK left the union in January 2020 can be attributed to global events including the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the FDF’s latest trade snapshot reveals other European countries including the Netherlands, Germany and Italy have increased their export volumes since 2020. The trade body has blamed post-Brexit trading arrangements for the slump in UK exports
How to end your phone addiction once and for all | Letter
The Guardian has published quite a lot of articles recently expressing some concern over the use of smartphones. Emma Beddington’s piece (My phone knows what I want before I do. That should be worrying – but it’s oddly comforting, 10 March) is perhaps the most alarming to date, mitigated to only some degree by her self-awareness. But help is at hand.There is a simple way in which we can set ourselves free
Crypto reaps political rewards after spending big to boost Trump
Hello, and welcome to TechScape. In this week’s edition, the crypto industry’s political investments pay off in spades, the left attempts to reclaim an optimistic view of our shiny technological future, and your memories of Skype.The US president hosted prominent crypto leaders at the White House on Friday in what seemed like a choreographed climax to weeks of handing the industry win after win.The day before, Donald Trump signed an executive order to create a “strategic reserve” of cryptocurrency for the US, which he called “digital Fort Knox for digital gold to be stored”. It’s just one of several recent announcements that indicated a new and friendly posture toward the industry
NBC Universal agrees to $3bn extension to broadcast Olympics in US
NBC Universal has unveiled a $3bn extension of its Olympics deal, ensuring the Summer and Winter Games remain on NBC and its Peacock streaming service in the US until 2036.The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Comcast, the telecoms conglomerate which owns NBC, announced their latest lucrative partnership – the biggest single biggest source of revenue for the IOC – on Thursday.As a result, the US network will continue to broadcast the Olympics beyond the 2032 Games in Brisbane, when its previous deal was set to conclude. LA will host the Olympics in 2028.The deal means the 2034 Winter Olympics, in Salt Lake City, and the 2036 Summer Olympics, the host city of which has yet to be selected, will air on NBC in the US
Wales will combine ‘heart and brain’ as Sherratt aims to sign off with a win
Wales are aiming to surprise England with a combination of “heart and brain” when the two teams meet in Cardiff on Saturday. The caretaker Wales coach, Matt Sherratt, in his final game in charge, believes his team can upset the odds and avoid a 17th successive Test defeat and a second consecutive tournament whitewash.Sherratt has already helped improve squad morale after the abrupt mid-season departure of Warren Gatland and would love to conclude the campaign with a win to reward the hard work of all involved in the Welsh setup. “If that win comes it would give everyone a massive lift, especially against England at home,” said Sherratt, who will revert to his existing job with Cardiff next week.“I would love to sign off [with a win], not for me but for the players and staff who have been here for a long time
‘People want change’: voter anger opens door for Reform in key Labour seats
Jonathan Reynolds ‘corrects record’ for referring to himself as ex-solicitor
‘There is no moral case’: Labour divided over prospect of benefit cuts
Keir Starmer could face biggest rebellion over disability benefit freeze
UK accuses Russia of driving its Moscow embassy towards closure
The fruit of flattery is tariffs, but Trump-wrangler Starmer stays circumspect | John Crace