Explained: The strange way Lewis Hamilton holds his steering wheel
- Hamilton is seen with his left hand on top of the steering wheel
- It is a technique that the other drivers on the grid have not yet seen
- The seven-time world champion has had a difficult season, as Mercedes struggles to get a grip on the new regulations
A Mercedes mechanic has explained why Lewis Hamilton holds the steering wheel in a special way.
Fans have noticed that the seven-time World Drivers’ Champion is not holding both handles with both hands, but instead has his left hand on top.
Despite Hamilton’s elite status, it appears to be a technique that no other driver on the grid has decided to adopt, not even teammate George Russell.
Despite much speculation about it Xhe never revealed the reason behind it, but instead it has been hinted at by a team mechanic who takes fans on a tour of the Mercedes pit.
It is a technique that is only used at the beginning of a race before moving to a more conventional grip.
The Mercedes mechanic recreated Lewis Hamilton’s grip during the race, while explaining its purpose
And in a clip shared on the social media platform, a Mercedes mechanic informs fans that he must prevent a gearshift disaster at a crucial point in the race.
The mechanic adopted the same grip as Hamilton and said, “Do you know why Lews starts like that?”
‘Why? What do you think?
‘Is he showing you something? Or hold (the downshift paddle) so it can’t go down a gear.
‘Because you don’t want to accidentally shift down a gear. If you put your hand there, you can’t downshift.”
One of the suggestions for Hamilton’s decision is that he prefers a smaller paddle shifter than his fellow drivers and could be more sensitive to this.
Lewis Hamilton first started using the grip in the 2021 season
Although it’s worth noting that the 38-year-old hasn’t always used this technique, as it was first seen during the 2021 season.
Mercedes and Hamilton have struggled to get to grips with the new regulations introduced at the start of last season, with the British driver yet to win a race since the start of 2022.
Although their new direction of adding side pods has seen them compete at the top again, they are still far behind the pace of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull.
And things went from bad to worse when he collided with George Russell at the start of the Qatar Grand Prix.