07/06/2007
NEWS STORY
Although the words will no doubt be re-arranged to make a quote similar to the original, but meaning the complete opposite, Lewis Hamilton has rubbished talk of his team favouring his teammate, two-time world Champion Fernando Alonso.
Speaking in Canada, ahead of this weekend's Grand Prix, the English youngster admitted that he was surprised by the furore that followed the Monaco Grand Prix, when he was alleged to have complained (through gritted teeth) that he had been ordered to give way to his fellow McLaren driver.
While the Spaniard has the number 'one' on his car, courtesy of his success in defending his title in 2006, Hamilton's car bears the number 'two', not necessarily in deference to his status within the team, but rather the fact that 'two' follows 'one'. In Monaco, Hamilton, who is in his first season of F1, rightly pointed out that his car carries the number 'two' a fact that was deliberately misinterpreted as meaning that it is his duty to support Alonso.
"The team give me the exact same car as Fernando," the Englishman told reporters. "I have got a fantastic group of guys working on my car, who are as good as Fernando's guys if not better. I have got a real strong belief in them and all the guys here want to win. No one is biased; they are very, very level and very equal.
"I feel the team are going to give me the car, me and Fernando, to win and I feel it is going to come down to the end of the season," he continued. "It will just be at the end who is the most consistent and who makes the least mistakes."
Referring to the media outcry that followed the Monaco event, completely overshadowing McLaren's 150th Grand Prix victory, Hamilton said: "I could see it was just getting bigger and bigger. "I was quite surprised that such a big thing was made out of it.
"Alonso did a fantastic job in the race and there is no doubt he did the best job and deserved to win.
"My time will come though," he added. "I am only 22, we have got time."