Hamilton: “The best day of my life”

Lewis Hamilton became at the age of 29 the 16th pilot of F1 to win at least two world titles in the discipline, the 4th Briton after Sir Jackie Stewart, Jim Clark and Graham Hill. The pilot Mercedes, who started from 2nd place on the grid for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix behind Nico Rosberg, only needed a 2nd place to ensure the coronation in the event of his rival's victory. The pole-sitter finally finished in the points due to mechanical problems, while the Briton went on to win his 11th victory of the season, the 33rd of his career, by taking the advantage from the start against his teammate.

“I’m going to have a hard time finding the words.” commented the double world champion on the podium. “I thank the public and my loved ones for their support, as well as my team who did an incredible job. This season is magnificent, it’s as if I had won my first title. I had one of the best starts of my career by taking direct control. I then had different options open to me. But the car was fantastic even if qualifying wasn't perfect. »

Lewis Hamilton finally emerges victorious from the duel which pitted him against his teammate all season. The latter remained a good sport by insisting on finishing the race and going to congratulate the Briton after the finish. “Nico has been a big rival this year. We started together on the circuits, competing in several Championships. He came to congratulate me before the podium and I returned the compliment. I'll take things one by one. The feeling I experience is beyond what one can imagine, even compared to 2008. It's the happiest day of my life." added the big winner of the weekend.

Find the full report of the final of the 2014 F1 season, produced by our special correspondents on site in Abu Dhabi, in issue 1988 of AUTOhebdo, available from tomorrow evening in digital version, and from next Wednesday on newsstands .