“Of course, he wasn’t from the same country as me but he was the guy that inspired me as a youngster. I love you all”.
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“Today, so many times, I thought I’d lost the race”.
“I am sitting here thinking about my first British championship when my dad and I drove home singing “We are the Champions” and it is just insane to think now I am a three-time Formula One world champion”.
“I was just grateful for the first title, and I am not the only one who has been achieving things in the family”.
Hamilton, who now has 43 career victories compared to Senna’s 41, said: “It is a very humbling experience to equal Ayrton Senna who inspired me and still does today. I have the chance to inspire here – never give up on your dreams”, he added.
Hamilton now joins his idol Ayrton Senna with a hat-trick of titles to his name. Vettel said. “I’ve been in this seat before”.
“Nico has been a fantastic teammate and has driven so well since we’ve been teammates, so big respect to him”.
At first glance it appeared a fair move by Hamilton on his Mercedes team-mate but on further inspection the pair appeared to bang wheels with the Briton leaving Rosberg little room for manoeuvre.
Speaking after the race, Hamilton said at a press conference: “This is a dream come true. I won the championship last year, and now this year, it is just unbelievable”, Hamilton told Sky Sports News headquarters.
Coral bookmakers made Hamilton 6-1 second-favourite to become the BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 2015.
“No complaining. Safe enough to run”, Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo radioed to his garage early in the session.
Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg sat nearby, slumped in a feeling of disgust revealed when Hamilton tossed him his second-place cap and the German flipped it right back, almost hitting Hamilton in the face. Vettel came in third. Rosberg flung it back, without the flicker of a smile. A safety auto deployed after Ericsson’s Sauber stopped on track wiped out Rosberg’s lead.
Vettel of Ferrari finished third.
“I was behind the Safety auto and Nico with 10 laps to go and thinking ‘The world championship…am I going to get it?'”
But the error of his own making handed the position to Hamilton, and rather than staging a late charge, he had to spend his time watching his mirrors and holding off Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari, who completed the podium in third place, a result that keeps him second in the drivers’ standings.
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Meanwhile, Rosberg was not a happy man after the race.
