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LEWIS HAMILTON reportedly permanently rattled Fernando Alonso when the pair were team-mates at McLaren in 2007.Spanish star Alonso, 40, raced alongside the Mercedes driver for just one year in what was the latter’s rookie season in Formula One.
Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso were team-mates at McLaren in the 2007 seasonCredit: PA:Press Association
Hamilton, who is gearing up for his 16th year in F1, finished the World Championship in second place behind Kimi Raikkonen, while Alonso finished a place behind.
The Alpine ace went into the 2007 season having won the world title in 2005 and 2006 with Ferrari.
And despite finishing with the same amount of points as the British legend, 37, he finished in third after Hamilton boasted more second-placed finishes.
Alonso lasted just one year at McLaren following a number of internal clashes with the seven-time world champion.
Their sour relationship at the time has been highlighted in a biography of Hamilton by journalist Frank Worrall.
The source quoted in the book is an anonymous insider, who has detailed the early states of Hamilton’s career and relationship with former McLaren CEO Ron Dennis.
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Quoted by Marca, the excerpt read: “It caused a lot of commotion when the press said we favoured Lewis because he was British.
“This was a lie; we were a team and owed everything to McLaren. Ron wouldn’t allow that to happen.
“Lewis was unique, he applied himself more than most experience drivers and unlike the rest was touched by a magic wand.
“Alonso was almost always angry.”
The former Renault star acknowledged his rivalry with Hamilton in November, where he remarked: “We talked in 2008, 2010 and 2011 and we were closer than ever in those years.
“We understood that in 2007 we were not very well managed by our bosses.
“Then we were both very young and very competitive and we needed some kind of guidance and we didn’t get it.

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“It was an easy conclusion to make of the 2007 season and we respected each other a lot and understood each other a lot too.
“Now we have this respectful relationship, but maybe it is colder than it used to be.
“We have different opinions on different things. Lewis has a different lifestyle to many of us and that separates us.”
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MAX VERSTAPPEN is the fastest and most gifted driver in F1, according to former world champ Jensen Button.The Sky Sports pundit says Verstappen will believe he has a point to prove after winning the 2021 World Championship in controversial circumstances.
Jensen Button labelled Max Verstappen the most gifted driver in F1Credit: PA
But Button believes Lewis Hamilton could regain the championship due to Mercedes’ advantage over Red BullCredit: AFP or licensors
But Button does believe Verstappen has work to do to build on his natural ability and become the all-round driver Hamilton is.
Button told Sky Sports F1: “For me, he’s the fastest, most gifted driver of anyone, but it’s whether he can improve on that and build himself into someone like Lewis who is the complete package.
“I’m sure [Verstappen] wants to come out fighting and fight for victory from the word go.
“It’s kind of a World Championship he has won, but I’m sure he wants to go and win another so he can go ‘look, it wasn’t down to Michael Masi’.
“It’s always difficult when there’s a controversial ending, but he’s an exceptional talent and I said that from the word go.
“Max was always going to be a good driver and it’s whether he can keep building on the natural ability he has.”
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However, Button believes Mercedes have the upper hand over Red Bull going into the new season and has predicted Hamilton to battle it out with new team-mate George Russell for the championship.
Hamilton was subject to retirement rumours since the end of last season but on Monday he revealed he will be coming back for another year.
And he is set to speak to media at the unveiling of Mercedes’ new car on Friday, alongside Russell.
He will likely be asked about the controversy in Abu Dhabi with the FIA still yet to make a decision on the future of race director Michael Masi after he broke his own rules in Yas Marina. More

WILLIAMS have snubbed tributes to the late Ayrton Senna on their 2022 F1 car for the first time since the Brazilian’s death.The team is now owned by US private investment firm Dorilton Capital.
Williams are ‘moving on’ from their Ayrton Senna tribute on their F1 carsCredit: © 2020 NBCUniversal All Rights
The team have included an ‘S’ tribute on all of their F1 cars since his death in 1994Credit: Motorsports Images
Williams have confirmed that their new car won’t have the ‘S’ tributeCredit: AFP
And they have said that they wanted to ‘move on’.
The iconic Senna ‘S’ logo has featured on every Williams F1 car since his death 28 years ago.
The legend was killed while racing for the team at Imola in 1994.
Team principal Jost Capito said: “The decision was that we want to move on in the future.
“We have a new era, we have a new car and we refurbished our museum where we have a special area to celebrate Ayrton.
“We had to look now in the future and not showing the drivers the ‘S’ all the time they get in the car and being reminded on what happened.”
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The move is likely to upset the team’s fans.
But Capito says they were committed to still working with the Senna Foundation that was set up by Senna’s sister Viviane.
Under the team’s founder, Sir Frank Williams, who passed away last November aged 79, Williams won nine constructors’ championships, seven drivers’ titles and 114 races. More