Villeneuve Insinuates Lewis Hamilton’s Class Act After F1 Title Defeat Motivated By Hollywood Career Pursuit

Ever since Lewis Hamilton went into ‘hiding’, there have been a load of theories over his unusual silence. A handful of them reckoned that it had everything to do with the stewards who ‘manipulated’ the season finale by denying the seven-time world champion the title.

Meanwhile, another group of theorists opined Hamilton’s silence was because he lost hope in Formula One altogether, hence, using the time to evaluate the option of quitting racing. Amidst such opinions pouring in over the past month, here’s former F1 driver, Jacques Villeneuve, chipping in his point of view.

Formula One F1 – Brazilian Grand Prix – Jose Carlos Pace Circuit, Sao Paulo, Brazil – November 11, 2021 Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes

The Canadian likes to trigger controversies through his unique style of critiquing and this time, it’s Toto Wolff who’s ended up in the firing line. Villeneuve blamed Wolff for causing a ‘great deal of image damage’ to Hamilton, to an extent that the latter chose to avoid the Austrian.

He further felt that Hamilton chose to react sensitively following the Abu Dhabi GP as he was probably thinking about his future in Hollywood.

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As reported by Speed Week, Villeneuve opened up about why Hamilton has been staying away from everyone including his own Mercedes F1 boss, Wolff.

“Ultimately, you can lose in style. But, Toto behaved like someone who plays Monopoly and knocks over the whole board when he loses. In my opinion, this has caused a great deal of image damage. Hamilton reacted sensitively because he might also be thinking about his future in America, or even in Hollywood,” he said.

Villeneuve further admitted that Hamilton is starting to enter the phase of withdrawal amidst visible physical struggles in the tense 2021 season.

Formula One F1 – United States Grand Prix – Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas, U.S. – October 23, 2021 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after qualifying in pole position as Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton who qualified in second place, walks by REUTERS/Brian Snyder

“Lewis is also a bit more tired than in previous years. He had an easy game after Nico Rosberg’s GP farewell. But last season was tough and I don’t think he wants to experience another year like the last one,” he added.

Overall, sadly, Villeneuve’s words might actually be true as Hamilton genuinely looked drained out by the end of the season-long battle in 2021. And coping with another such season in 2022 might further worsen his physical stature. Hence, is Hamilton’s retirement announcement closer than ever?

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