Berlin (dpa) - Former Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug already considers Lewis Hamilton's achievements to be unmatched.
"What Lewis has been doing in terms of consistency and ability in Formula 1 for 14 years is simply unique and never seen before," said the 67-year-old Haug in an interview with the Internet portal "Sport1.de": "And it will be in my opinion also most likely never to be recurring. "
This year, Hamilton can set Michael Schumacher's record of seven world titles, as well as equalize and even surpass the 91 Grand Prix victories of the now 51-year-old. 88 reach Hamilton so far. The 35-year-old Briton has by far the most pole positions (92). With 156 podium places he last outbid Schumacher's 155 at the Spanish Grand Prix.
"That Michael's previously unique record would ever be overtaken or even surpassed was unimaginable for ages. But if you paid attention, it became clear two years ago at the latest that Lewis is on the very best path, all existing Formula 1 records to beat, "said Haug. "Michael never had such a superior environment and such an unrivaled racing car as Lewis finds at Mercedes." However, this should not diminish Hamilton's performance.
With Mercedes, he has dominated Formula 1 for years. Hamilton switched to the German works team for the 2013 season as the successor to Schumacher. After winning the World Cup in 2008 with McLaren-Mercedes, he expanded his collection of Silver Arrows and won the World Cup in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
"Just as Mercedes has managed to create first-class conditions for victories and world titles for Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari has failed to do this for Sebastian Vettel," said Haug.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 200822-99-265348 / 2
Interview Haug