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![lewis hamilton on the cooldown room moment with him and lando norris](https://webp.gp.cdn.pxr.nl/news/2024/07/25/abaee8901a27989b691c97390b987f48cc68e871.jpg?width=1800)
Hamilton responds after frosty cooldown room moment with Norris
There was a lot of tension after the Hungarian Grand Prix. The team orders from McLaren were a huge talking point during the race, as well as after, and the collision between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen amplified the battle for the final podium place. Emotions were running high after the race, and that showed in the cooldown room as Hamilton and Lando Norris had a bit of an icy moment before going onto the podium. The seven-time World Champion responds to that incident.
After Norris was ordered to let his teammate Oscar Piastri through to take the win of the race after McLaren made a mistake in the second round of pit stops, the Brit was not overly impressed in having to give up the position, but also not giving himself the best opportunity of victory after losing the lead of the race on lap 1 from his teammate.
That resulted in a blunt exchange between the 24-year-old and Hamilton post-race. Hamilton commented on the pace of the McLarens after earning a 1-2 at the Hungaroring, saying, "You guys are fast!", to which Norris replied, "You had a fast car seven years ago." Hamilton then answered back with a little jab, saying "That was ages ago. Were you even here seven years ago?" Norris retorted back by saying, "You had a quick car. You made the most of it, and now it's us!"
Hamilton said the cooldown room exchange "did not bother me"
Speaking at the Belgian Grand Prix to several media sources including GPblog, Hamilton was asked about that incident in Budapest, but Hamilton was quick to dismiss any negativity surrounding it: "It didn't bother me, no. I'm nearly 40 years old, so I remember being in my mid-20s, and I remember when I go back and look at things that I said I would say differently or I would have reacted differently. I noticed when you come out of the race you feel like you should have won and your emotions are spiraling. I see that. It's an age thing and I don't take it personally."
This is now the 18th F1 season that Hamilton has competed in, so he knows the kind of pressure and expectations that drivers put on their shoulders which results in some interesting post-race conversations. "Ultimately, all of us drivers do put a lot of pressure on ourselves. That's how we do what we do. And I don't think you can be particularly great without putting pressure on yourself in life. You've got to aim high, and if you fail, and you're like, that's the greatest thing ever, you're really relaxed about it, then I don't think you're ever going to naturally achieve what you want to achieve.
"Can you be too hard on yourself? For sure," continued the seven-time World Champion, who spoke about how he used to deal with the pressure back in his first few seasons. "There was a time I didn't think about it for three days when I was his age, so I know what it's like. And that wasn't healthy for me, but I don't think that does something to help me during the three days at the moment. I don't know if it doesn't, nobody invited me. I think what's important is just to continue to do his journey. He's driving great. They've got a great car, and it's important to get together as a team," Hamilton concluded