Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel both receive unwanted F1 award
Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton crowned biggest whingers behind the Safety Car
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel will need to share a not-so-coveted award given to them by F1 Safety Car driver Bernd Mayländer.
Said award is that of Formula 1’s biggest whinger when it comes to driving behind the Safety Car.
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel given unwanted F1 award
The Safety Car is a vital initiative in Formula 1 when it comes to keeping drivers and marshals safe, the vehicle deployed to guide F1 cars around the track at a slower speed until a hazard has been resolved.
Since 2000, ex-DTM racer Bernd Mayländer has been the driver tasked with manning the Safety Car, which currently sees him at the wheel of either a Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series or the Aston Martin Vantage.
And in an interview with The Telegraph, Mayländer was asked which driver(s) whinges the most when behind him on track.
He settled on a pair of F1 icons, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, who have a combined 11 World Championships between them, seven for Hamilton and four for Vettel.
“Immediately I would say Sebastian and Lewis,” said Mayländer, who added: “But I don’t blame them for it.”
While the explosive power of a Formula 1 car may make the Safety Car appear sluggish, Mayländer is not out there for a serene, smooth Sunday drive.
“Once the track is clear, I’m probably going at 95 per cent race speed,” he insisted.
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Though Hamilton will have to share this particular award with Vettel, he was previously given an outright P1 of his own by Mayländer for best hider.
Speaking in a 2023 interview with German publication Auto Motor und Sport, Mayländer revealed: “Lewis always hides a bit behind the car.
“You always have to look into the blind spot – where is he?”
Hamilton’s seven World titles places him atop the F1 mountain alongside Michael Schumacher, Hamilton’s pursuit of that record-breaking eighth crown having taken him to Ferrari, the team where Schumacher truly became an F1 icon, and which Hamilton joined ahead of the 2025 campaign.
However, hopes of that eighth crown look to be on hold until F1 2026, Hamilton sat P6 in the Drivers’ Championship with 12 of 24 rounds complete in F1 2025, Hamilton 131 points behind leader Oscar Piastri.
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