Bernie Ecclestone had expected Lewis Hamilton to retire from Formula One before the 2021 season, rather than continue and maybe equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven World Championships.
Bernie Ecclestone admits he was “surprised” when Lewis Hamilton decided to stay in Formula One this year, since he had not anticipated the Mercedes driver to want to break Michael Schumacher’s record of seven championships.
Hamilton and Schumacher are presently equal for the most Formula One World Championships with seven each. If Hamilton wins his title fight with Max Verstappen this season, he will set a new record for most wins in a single season.
Ecclestone, on the other hand, does not believe that this would detract from Schumacher’s accomplishments in the sport.
When asked if an eighth championship for Hamilton would put the 36-year-old ahead of Schumacher in the eyes of fans, Ecclestone told RTL, “No, not at all.”
“In fact, I’m surprised Lewis didn’t say at the beginning of the year, ‘I’m stepping down, I don’t want to win more races or World Championships than Michael.'”
Title fight is “what people want”
With two races remaining, Hamilton is still in contention for the 2021 Formula One World Championship, behind Verstappen by eight points.
Ecclestone believes the contest is delivering what fans want to see because it has been closely fought throughout the season.
“It’s a fight we’ve been waiting for, for seven or eight years. It’s finally a competition again,” the former F1 boss said.
“This is what people want when they watch Formula 1, or any sport for that matter – they want competition.”
The differing approaches Hamilton and Verstappen used, according to Ecclestone, added to the spectacle.
“They are both very competitive in their own way,” he explained. “They have a different style, a different way of dealing with things and then that suits the races.”
Verstappen has a mathematical chance of winning the championship at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but the race might go down to the wire at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix a week later.
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