Q: (Christoph Becker – Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung) Lewis, picking up on that question; you just said you remembered Michael (Schumacher) racing in the red car and you said a couple of days ago that you’re not sure how much longer you want to be racing; you said a couple of years. In this moment, today, at this emotional day, if you listen to your inner voice or to your gut feeling, is there something that says: you know what, I can catch those other records that he holds? I can get to 92 GP victories, I can get to seven or eight World Championships, and I want to do that.
LH: I think, first and foremost, we all know how exceptional Michael was and his records have lasted for so long and he will always… there’s one particular record which is going to be very hard for anyone to catch. Each year I don’t set a goal to make records. I have a goal of somehow… improving certain areas where you feel you could be better. I love racing, I love the… I’m different. I love my different qualities, compared to the others. That doesn’t mean they’re better or worse, I’m grateful for the qualities and the abilities I have in the car. It is very very crazy to think that I’ve matched certain records from people; weekend in, weekend out, someone tells me of a new record that I’ve crept up on, but there potentially many many more years to go. I do look at my life… I travel so much, there’s so much that I do, it’s a lot sacrifices. People talk about Michael’s singlemindedness about his job but to stand out in the world today, it’s a lot harder, I think, to stand out today in this world, because it’s all been done before, so to do something different as a Formula One driver, not only be the greatest you can be as a racing driver but also do other things, prepare your afterlife to be just as great, not as good because Formula One is just the pinnacle of the sport. You arrive on the biggest wave and afterwards there are going to be much smaller waves but that doesn’t mean you still can’t do great things. So doing something different that helps you stand out, that really highlights your individuality I think is really important and that’s really something I’m working on, so I’ll continue to race while I love it. As I’ve said, I’ve enjoyed it this year more than ever. I do think about Jeez, it would be so nice at some stage just to live in one place, a lot more socialising, walking your dogs every day or surfing, whatever it is, but staying in one place for a period of time. But then I’m thinking there’s a lot of life to live beyond forty, there’s a lot to go and so the balance is: I can’t come back to Formula One, so there’s going to be a point in which OK, I’ve had enough. I’ve already been blessed and had such a wonderful time here in these ten years. Hopefully I have my place here and I’m going to continue to – whilst I’m at my best – continue to try and… and I want to go out on top so that’s my goal. Obviously each year, I could do the easy thing like obviously Nico did which is just stop and retreat with these four titles, but I think there’s more in me, I think there’s more to come, more of a challenge, as there’s harder times ahead and I like that, I love that, that’s challenging.
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