This is a pretty good interview.
https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/for ... erview-f1/
Deepl translation:
Seventh World Cup title, new contract, campaigns for more diversity: Lewis Hamilton has already said enough about these issues. We asked him about his work behind the scenes. Hamilton told us how the Mercedes became a car that is also good in slow corners.
How can someone who is almost perfect improve?
Hamilton: I can't remember every single year that I drove in Formula 1. But 2020 feels like the season in which I drove at the highest level on average. On the one hand that is the natural progress, although you can't always get it perfect. The difference from before was that the effects of the Corona pandemic gave us more time to reflect on our mistakes. Last year I drove strong races, but was not so good in the qualifying. So I went into this season with the aim of working on my weaknesses without giving up my strengths. I managed to get better in the qualifying, but I also improved in the race. That came as a surprise for me.
What did you change?
Hamilton: We have the same tyres as in 2019, I have learned to use them better. I now also understand the technical side of the car better, the car set-up. There are so many settings on these cars that it is easy to forget anything. And then, for example, you didn't try out all possible differential settings until the qualifying round. You are always running out of time somehow. In the end you are pushed into a quick decision. We have become more efficient, which is also due to the communication with my crew.
So is there anything at all to improve for 2021?
Hamilton: It's getting harder and harder. And it's becoming easier and easier to let things go badly if you let certain things go badly. Every athlete arrives at some point where the only thing he can do is to make adjustments in detail. I do not stand still. I know what I have to do to bring myself into the best possible position mentally and physically. Then it is a matter of recognising the things that can go even better.
You are the master of tyre management. Did that come naturally, or was there an enlightenment at some point?
Hamilton: I am aware of the importance of tyre management since my GP2 days. Nothing fundamental has changed in my driving style. Taking care of the tyres has not only something to do with your driving style. It also depends on what the team makes of it. When I was at McLaren, I put pressure on the team, gave them my ideas about tyre pressures and temperatures, but they never really listened. I wanted to change that at Mercedes.
At the beginning, it was also a struggle to try different things. You can design a car, you can work out a good car set-up, but the biggest contribution to lap times is the tyres and how you get the most out of them on a lap and at a distance. There are things like the set-up or the aero balance that influence that. I've been pushing how I want the aero-balance to be. Since 2014 we have been changing it step by step in my desired direction. The engineers have their simulations, which calculate what the best vehicle balance should look like. But these simulations will never be able to do what I can do as a driver.
I have the feeling for the car on my side. I have also learned a lot through the process of telling the team what I want and thinking creatively. It is a give and take. And when you get a good result, you have the right argument on your side. Then you can say: Look here, let's try something, even if it sounds crazy. That made us better as a team.
Does working with the engineers on a car make the big drivers?
Hamilton: As a young driver, you don't understand how Michael Schumacher was able to put together such a successful package with Ferrari at the time, or how I am now with Mercedes. Half believe that I am simply lucky enough to sit in a good car. Today I appreciate what Michael did back then. You have to be at the helm to steer this group of smart, determined and creative people in a direction of development so that the car will eventually harmonise perfectly with the driver.
Is there a standard process of continuous improvement?
Hamilton: On average I meet with my team every week to discuss the situation. At my request this group has been enlarged. I also always know which direction we are going with the next car. In the past, it often happened that the aerodynamicists told me in the wind tunnel what problems they wanted to eliminate and what their next steps on the car would be. From time to time I had to tell them: This is not our problem. This direct conversation was always more important to me. I didn't want to hear at second hand what the aerodynamics engineers were planning. Far too much is lost.
At the end of the year I tell my boys that they deserve to enjoy the success, but that we have to talk about the critical points on the car first. Then we also talk about how we can improve our communication. Whether we should meet more often or less often. Or we go through our checklist and I tell them This point is not so important, but you should put the one higher on the list. Let's make better use of the five minutes we gain by doing this.
What has been improved on the 2019 car following your criticism?
Hamilton: Engineers often think they know everything better. Some may not like listening to the driver. At least that was the case with McLaren. With Mercedes it's different. I don't go to the engineers and tell them Do this, do that. I say, hey, there's something wrong here, we can do something better. Then they think about it and come back and ask: How about we do it like this? So we work together step by step.
An example: We have the longest car in the field. The funny thing is: none of the other teams have copied us, and we win most of the races. They are so caught up in their concept that they don't want to break out of it. The length gives us outstanding downforce, but it also makes the car less agile. Last year our car was good in fast and medium fast corners, but not in slow ones. During the winter tests we still saw a similar tendency. I put pressure on us to change the car's set-up to deal with this problem. And it has improved without giving too much away. We no longer have the problem of turning the car fast.
Does the front axle bite better?
Hamilton: I always wanted cars that react well on the front axle. But with these tyres there are limits. If you go beyond that, the tyres get too hot. So you can only react mechanically at one end of the car up to a certain point without deteriorating the other end. It is like a swing. Last year our car was very strong at the rear. So we had much more understeer. This year, with the aero-balance we went a bit more to the rear, which gave us more freedom mechanically at the front. The car now behaves better in the slow corners with more steering angle and rolling behaviour.
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