Mercedes boss Toto Wolff doesn’t understand what makes Lewis Hamilton so polarising in the UK.
The Briton moved into second alone in the all-time Formula 1 championship list by claiming his sixth title in 2019, just one behind the record held by Michael Schumacher.
That has led to calls for Hamilton to receive a knighthood, noting the same honour has been given to other sports stars, but for Wolff, it is the divisive response to his driver which leaves him perplexed.
“It is difficult for me, as an Austrian, to understand the importance of the British honours system,” he said via The Telegraph this week.
“What I feel is that there is a lot of polarisation around Lewis, particularly in the UK. Why that is, I don’t know.
“But one thing I’m certain of is that one day when he decides to stop his career, people will acknowledge his successes and what a great superstar he was.”
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Something that is often brought up by Hamilton detractors is his lifestyle off the track, and the controversy surrounding taxes etc., but the Mercedes boss takes a different perspective.
“What I look at is the person behind the superstar,” Wolff explained.
“When I interact with people, I don’t care at all who they are. I have a lot of respect for those who are not in the public eye, or who are not great achievers. I respect them because of how they are: their behaviour, their values.
“If you look at the common pattern among football managers dealing with stars, the relationships are very authentic and neutral.
“I don’t think Jurgen Klopp cares how many Instagram followers a player has. He cares for the human. This is why my relationship with Lewis was never disturbed by the rockstar factor.”
As for what the Briton himself thinks of potentially one day becoming Sir Lewis Hamilton…
“I don’t really like to think too much about it,” he claimed.
“Just the fact that people have mentioned it, it’s already an honour, but it’s not been something that I’ve been chasing in my life.
“If at any point that was to happen, I don’t particularly know how I would handle it.
“I have stood in front of Her Majesty The Queen before and it was pretty incredible and I think she’s just awesome. Again, I don’t think it’s going to happen, and again, it doesn’t bother me if it doesn’t.
“It doesn’t mean I’m not British. It doesn’t mean I’m not continuing to try and raise the flag as well as I can.”