Bono reflects on time with Hamilton: "Bounced back from pretty bad stuff"
F1 News
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has said thank you and goodbye to Mercedes. With that, 12 years of hard racing, wins and losses, highs and lows, have come to an end. Peter 'Bono' Bonnington reflects on what it has meant for him to work with fellow Briton prior to Hamilton's long-awaited move to Ferrari in 2025.
Speaking to Sky Sports, 'Bono' reflects on more than a decade of collaboration with Hamilton, an era by its own merit. "It's been one of ups and downs all the way. We've had some really low downs but the highs, outweigh it by a hundred times. We're here tonight celebrating but this is a bit of a ritual. Last race of the season we all tend to come back here and just congregate and just reflect on what we've done. For Lewis, as you say, end of an era, end of this chapter with him".
'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger'
Of course, not all was rainbows and roses for the Mercedes duo. Their path together was challenging at times, but they always found a way to "bounce back from some pretty bad stuff." "I've loved every minute, even the tough times because what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. We've bounced back from some pretty bad stuff but I'm just so grateful to have been part of his life and part of his achievement. I can't believe I'm still here doing it. He's stuck with me this long, so I must be doing something right."
The Mercedes Head of Race Engineering then reveals a deeper side to being the voice in the driver's ear: "As you know, drivers tend to not have coaches but we feel that engineers are actually the driver coach. We're there to work them through all the engineering side of stuff but also the psychological stuff and just make sure we all stay together and keep it on the right path."
What makes Hamilton so unique to Bono?
The British engineer also had time to reveal what he will miss the most about Hamilton, which in his mind's eye, sets him apart from every other driver on the grid. "As always. Lewis, he's a Sunday man. Every Sunday he brings his A-game. That's what we saw today. That's going to be the thing that I'm gonna miss most about it, you know that when the lights go out you are going to get 100 percent out of the guy. He gives it his all in every single race. That is his most endearing quality, the guy's got racecraft of no other," the Mercedes man concluded.
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