Recently, former Ferrari driver Rubens Barrichello made a surprising admission about Lewis Hamilton. The Brazilian veteran suggested that the reigning champion has more talent than legendary drivers, Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. Barrichello is a huge fan of the British driver’s serenity even in the face of intense pressure.
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Barrichello currently holds the record for the most Grand Prix entries, with 326 starts. However, he will likely be forced to surrender it to Kimi Raikkonen, who is 10 away from his tally.
The former Ferrari, Honda, Brawn and Williams driver has raced with Senna, Schumacher and Hamilton during his career. So, he is technically the best judge to see if Hamilton measured up to the two legends.
Barrichello partnered Michael Schumacher since 2000 until 2005, back when Schumacher was at his strongest. Despite this, he still rates Lewis Hamilton as the most talented driver.
“Hamilton has a talent that is possibly even greater than Ayrton’s and Schumacher’s,” he told ESPN Brazil. “The only thing he lacked was maturity. He’s been progressing and today you see the end product.”
According to the veteran, experience has taught Lewis Hamilton how to stay cool, calm and collected in high-pressure situations. Barrichello cited the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, where Hamilton stayed calm on the radio. He even passed on information and assessed his priorities efficiently.
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Rubens Barrichello
What aspect of Lewis Hamilton goes into building the perfect driver?
After showering praises on the Mercedes driver, Rubens Barrichello was asked what traits would the perfect driver possess. Interestingly, Barrichello believes that an amalgamation of some traits of Senna, Hamilton and Schumacher would be ideal.
H1 cited that a perfect driver would have Ayrton’s skill, Schumacher’s courage and Hamilton’s coordination. However, it was worth noting that Barrichello considered Schumacher to be highly ‘selfish’.
He told the F1 Beyond the Grid podcast, “So many times we’d finish a meeting and then they’d start another one with just Michael there so I’d take my chair and would just sit there. Eventually I felt that the team was his.”
