'Shut up' command showed Hamilton he was ready to win, says engineer Bono

Silverstone (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Lewis Hamilton showed he was in winning mood at the British Grand Prix on Sunday when he took aim at his engineer over the team radio.

Published on: 07/07/2024 – 20:14

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“When I’m told to shut up, I know the game is on and he’s aiming for victory,” said long-time Mercedes race engineer Peter Bonnington after Hamilton’s “fairytale” triumph.

‘Bono’ and the tearful seven-time champion shared a champagne-soaked podium after their 83rd win together, having endured 945 days without a victory since their last triumph at the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

“It’s been a long time and he and I have worked hard to get back here,” Bonnington said. “It’s baby steps, but it’s taken a lot!”

In a fast-paced race with changing conditions, Hamilton and Bonnington preserved their positions and tyres, then took the lead with a bold tyre change in the closing laps.

It was then that Bonnington knew his driver’s long wait for victory was imminent.

“He does a great job at the finish line,” he said. “He’s the one who manages the tires and gets you to the finish.”

“I wouldn’t say there was no doubt, but I knew that once he had the bit between his teeth – once I was told to ‘shut up’ – then I knew the game was on.”

In that final stint, Hamilton overtook McLaren’s Lando Norris and held off three-time champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull to claim a record ninth British Grand Prix victory and a record 104th career win.

Team boss Toto Wolff has maintained faith in Lewis despite the 39-year-old Briton’s decision to leave for Ferrari at the end of this season.

“We couldn’t have written a better farewell to the British Grand Prix after 12 years, it was brilliant,” said Wolff.

“This is our last British Grand Prix together and the conclusion feels like a fairy tale. We leave the British public with Britain’s most iconic and successful driver.

“He’s a fantastic rider and when he feels he can win a Grand Prix, that’s when he’s at his strongest.”

Wolff added that it was a shame Mercedes could not have a second car in the top three after George Russell retired with a water pressure problem.

“Performance-wise it looks like we’re coming back,” he added, after the team’s second straight win, Russell having won in Austria a week earlier.