Hamilton defends aggressive driving style NEWS
Lewis Hamilton has defended his driving style after critics accuse him of being too aggressive.
In the face of growing criticism of his driving style, which has been branded as too aggressive, Britain's Lewis Hamilton has defended himself, ahead of Sunday's British Grand Prix at Silverstone, stating 'I will take my driving style to my deathbed, for sure'.
Hamilton has courted controversy several times this season with his on the track antics that have seen several high-profile collisions with other drivers, including his own team-mate Jenson Button. After two accidents during the Monaco Grand Prix, for which he was punished, Hamilton continued in the same vein at Montreal where he clashed with Button.
Former racing greats Sir Sterling Moss and Niki Lauda have joined current driver, Ferrari's Felipe Massa, in urging Hamilton to amend his aggressive tactics and, in the words of Massa, 'calm down'. During his commentary of the Canadian Grand Prix former champion Lauda described Hamilton as 'completely mad'.
Hamilton appeared unfazed by the criticism and responded 'People overreact to everything. You make a squeak and people overreact to it. That's the way of this world'.
The season so far has been turbulent for the McLaren driver who was World Champion in 2008. As well as his forceful driving style causing problems with the authorities and fellow drivers, his unhappiness with the lack of competitiveness of the McLaren car is well documented. Hamilton currently lies 89 points behind leader, Red Bull's Sebastien Vettel, despite being widely acknowledged as the fastest driver in F1.
Hamilton's undoubted frustration appears to be affecting his judgement, and not just on the track where his aggressive style is being interpreted as him trying too hard to make up for his car's lack of outright speed. Speculation is rife that Hamilton has directly approached Red Bull in an attempt to secure a move to the team that are the current pace setters in F1, a move that, if true, shows immense disrespect for the team that has supported him from his boyhood carting days all the way to the pinnacle of motor racing, F1.
It's certainly true that Hamilton was extremely critical of his car and, indirectly, his McLaren team when looking ahead to Sunday's race at Silverstone. In late June he stated he was not looking forward to his home Grand Prix saying 'We're just not quick enough to win there. I think we'll really struggle'. His team mate Jenson Button partly echoed Hamilton's sentiments when he also called for major upgrades to the car.
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