Race winner Lewis Hamilton (L) of Great Britain and Mercedes GP and third placed Valtteri Bottas (R) of Finland and Mercedes GP celebrate with sparkling wine on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace on November 14, 2021, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

"Lewis Hamilton was trying to kiss me" - Former Mercedes teammate once revealed bizarre moment with 7-time-world champion

By Gunaditya Tripathi

Modified Jan 26, 2023 20:16 IST

Valtteri Bottas once joked about the time Lewis Hamilton tried to 'kiss' him after the 2018 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix. A picture of both drivers showed them celebrating after winning the race, with Bottas humorously stating that Hamilton tried to kiss him and had his tongue out. However, both drivers just hugged.

The Express quoted the Finnish driver, saying:

"In this picture, Lewis was trying to kiss me, it was a really confusing moment. I went for the hug but then I could see his lips and then his tongue as well. Just before that, I changed my head to the other side and we hugged. Lewis whispered to me ‘Ok we will do it later."

Rizwan Rehmat

@dohagames

HELMETS SPEAK TO EACH OTHER IN BRAZIL:

F1 star Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton celebrates winning the Brazilian Grand Prix with Valtteri Bottas at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Interlagos in Sao Paulo on November 11, 2018.

Pic credit: REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker

Lewis Hamilton, too, reviewed the picture and had the same to say, but from his perspective. He stated that it was not him but Valtteri Bottas who wanted to kiss him. He then added that since both the drivers had helmets on, it didn't happen. He said:

"This is an interesting picture because I wasn’t sure if Valtteri wanted to kiss me or not. Thankfully we both had helmets on so he couldn’t get that close. Potentially in that moment, he might have wanted to kiss me but Valtteri it is ok."

Both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas were glad to bring the championship home

While Lewis Hamilton swept in his 5th world championship as a driver in 2018, there was still one more thing left for the team to achieve in the season: the constructor's championship. With their excellence in driving, however, the drivers were able to outperform their competitors, and another title came in for Mercedes, who were dominating then.

Valtteri Bottas spoke of the achievement and said:

"I don’t tell you what happened later but we won the title in this race as a team. It is a very proud moment for every member of the team. It was well deserved."

Respondendo o F1 Aleatórios com pilotos dos carros

@aleatoriodriver

@aleatoriosF1 @memeinteligentx Lewis Hamilton (🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿) e Valtteri Bottas

Hamilton was proud of this achievement too, as he added:

"We did what our primary goal is which is to win the Constructors’ Championship."

Both drivers raced together as teammates until the end of the 2021 season. Valtteri Bottas was then replaced by George Russell, who managed to outperform Hamilton in his first-ever season with the team in 2022. Bottas moved to Alfa Romeo, racing alongside Guanyu Zhou. Though the team suffered from certain issues throughout the season, they are hoping to bring in more points in the upcoming 2023 season.

Edited by
Anurag C