"He's like an octopus behind the wheel": James Vowles on the frustration of working with a talent like Lewis Hamilton

Williams F1 team principal and former Mercedes' head of strategy James Vowles recently described Lewis Hamilton as an 'octopus behind the wheel', which he claims led to the former feeling frustrated.

The Williams team boss was an integral part of the success of the Mercedes team in the turbo hybrid era as the head of strategy, helping them win eight consecutive constructors' championships.

While appearing on the High-Performance podcast, Vowles spoke about Lewis Hamilton's preparation heading into a race weekend. He stated that the driver's playing and adjusting the steering wheel caused a lot of frustration for people in the garage. Vowles said:

“Lewis just had these oodles of natural talent. With him, he's got these tendencies and traits where, if you go out in FP1 he's like an octopus all over the wheel. He'll change every setting on the wheel and explore. It's what makes him incredible. He's this optimizer where he'll use the data as a starting ground, but he's got a feel beyond anything else for it.

"He's got no issues exploring the boundaries. That originally manifested itself when he would often go off at Turn 1. He would find the absolute limit of braking and it would push him wide at Turn 1, then abort the lap. One of our biggest frustrations with him, over 20 laps he did one and we're like, 'Come on, you've got to do more than that!'"

Lewis Hamilton speaks about his love-hate relationship with F1

Lewis Hamilton claimed that he shares a love-hate relationship with the sport but pointed out that his eventual passion and love for F1 is the main reason for his longevity.

Speaking with Formula 1 Magazine, the seven-time world champion spoke about his relationship with the sport and said:

“I never thought that after such a long time in Formula 1, I would still feel the same love for the sport. It is a love-hate relationship, at times, you love it more than at others. I think there comes a point when you've had enough. But the love is still there.”

The Brit also spoke about continuing to perform at a high level in his 40s and added:

"I have no set plan for the future. I still feel fit and still enjoy what I do. I have now learned that you should never say 'never' in life.”

With his new deal with Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton will race well into his 40s and will be hoping to eventually win an elusive eighth world championship before he calls time on his career.