1-on-1 with Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton

Two-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton is heading into the U.S. Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin with the 2015 title all but wrapped up. Hamilton, 30, is a 42-race winner in F1 and has also won at Austin twice (2012, 2014).

Hamilton will be partnering with Epson Digital Imaging Solutions for the race at Austin this coming weekend, and sat down with BeyondTheFlag.com to discuss this new partnership as well as the upcoming race.

Beyond The Flag: You’re going to be partnering with Epson Imaging this weekend. Pairing with such an imaging giant, do you see this as a partnership that’ll last for the foreseeable future?

Lewis Hamilton: Absolutely. As a team we’re about performance and technology and innovation, and that’s the reason we’re in business. When we partner up with people, we want to make sure we’re in business with people who have the same values in whichever field they’re in. The great thing about Epson is that it gives business a bit of an edge by saving time and money through reliability. Whether it’s documents needing printing or with conference meetings where we’re using the projection screens we need to have that so we could be ahead of the rest.

That’s the reason this partnership started off real well. We’re very selective about the partnerships we have and we always talk about longevity. When it comes to great imaging products all you have to do is visit www.epson.com to check out their selections.

BTF: Speaking of the Epson products, which products have you become partial to or wish to own?

LH: I’d like to have one of their big projectors that they have that I was introduced to recently. I love watching movies, playing computer games and such, so I’m looking into getting one of their projectors and a projector screen. Also, when I’m at home I need a printer. I love pictures, so they’ve got great printing imagery for all machines to be able to print off good pictures. I already got some of those.

BTF: Could you explain how this partnership came about?

LH: I mean, this is a team partnership. I drive for Mercedes, so they were the ones that were able to connect with them. We have a lot of people on the team using products from that kind of market, so we wanted to make sure that we’re with the best.

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BTF: Looking to the U.S. Grand Prix, you’ve won there twice. What is it about the Circuit of the Americas that you are able to take to?

LH: Well, I mean I’ve learned to learn as fast as possible on these circuits, and I didn’t always have a lot of time so I had to learn really quickly on my feet. But this is a track that we’ve been racing at since 2012, and to practice I’ve had pretty much the same amount of time on it. It’s been really good to me. The track is fantastic.

We had a race [in the U.S.] in 2007 at the Indianapolis circuit, which wasn’t great. The infield circuit wasn’t spectacular. So they stopped having it and then they finally got a real circuit, which was here in Austin.

BTF: Would you say that by winning this race, you could very well have the championship locked up considering there are only three races left in 2015 afterward?

LH: Last year we went down to the wire, down to the last race. This year has been a more consistent year for us. It’s been a year where I’ve had much better reliability and performance overall, and I have more points at this point than I did last year.

So we still have four races to go and that’s how I’m approaching it: I’ve got four races to tie it up. As long as I cross the finish line of the last race as the champion, that’s my goal. It doesn’t matter if it happens this weekend or the next race or the next race.

Nov 2, 2014; Austin, TX, USA; Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton (44) of Great Britain drives through turn eleven during the 2014 U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Hamilton wins race. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

BTF: You say 2015 has been a more consistent year than it was last year. What has been so different this season?

LH: Last year was an outstanding year for us as a team and also for me as a driver in terms of performance but coming into this year it was a question of how we could take it to another level so we’ve put together cars that are more reliable.

Last year we had reliability issues, my teammate [Nico Rosberg] had a couple of them. There’s not a lot. Last year I had two or three and he maybe had one, and this year it’s been the other way around. Also, last year I didn’t qualify very well. I was always second or worse, and this year I’ve outperformed my teammate in most races and it’s been the best way to follow through with the wins. I have nine wins [in 2015], last year I had 11, and this year we still have four races to go. So we’re working on surpassing that.

BTF: Earlier this year you were said to hold an interest at possibly making some NASCAR starts. Have any teams contacted you since?

LH: No, most likely because they wouldn’t even know how to get a hold of me. I’m not the easiest person to get a hold of. But no, I can’t do it for one because my team would not allow it, but I would love to just try it, you know, just for the enjoyment of an event. I’ve never been to a NASCAR event but I’m hoping to go to one this year as a guest of Jeff Gordon, as we’re friends.

I’m just looking forward to going and seeing one of the races. I’m sure I’m going to catch one there, and at some stage we’ll get a chance to really do a race.

BTF: If you could choose which NASCAR team to drive for, who would you pick?

LH: That is a hard question. I mean, I swapped a car with Tony Stewart [in 2011], and he’s always had a great team, so I would probably speak to him about being a part of his team.

BTF: Aside from NASCAR, are there any other forms of American motorsport you’d be interesting in trying?

LH: I love Monster Trucks. Love Monster Trucks. I actually want a Monster Truck. What else? I like the X Games, their motocross stuff. What else? What else? Name something.

BTF: What about IndyCar?

LH: Um, no. I’m not into IndyCar. Maybe, what’s that, they’re on dirt, kind of like NASCAR, but on a dirt track?

BTF: World of Outlaws?

LH: Yeah, I would like to try one of those.

BTF: If your career in F1 were to end today, would you try to stay within the sport to some capacity?

LH: Honestly, when I think of the time of when I would stop, even if it was today, I’ve been racing for 22 years, so for one I’m going to have withdrawal symptoms. I’m going to want to be driving something. But at the same time I would want to step away for awhile.

I would go backpacking, see the world in a different view than I’ve had because I’ve traveled to these different countries but I’m going there for work. I haven’t really done any sightseeing. That’s probably something I would love to do and so for me, it initially have to be something away from racing.

Thanks to Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) and Connor Mellas (@ConnorMellas) for this interview.

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