Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton opened up about his grief following the passing of his bulldog Roscoe
As Formula 1 returns to action with this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton will race with a heavy heart.
Earlier this week, Hamilton announced the passing of his bulldog Roscoe, a favorite throughout the paddock and his long-time companion. Speaking to the media on Thursday ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, the seven-time Drivers’ Champion opened up about grief, as well as the “overwhelming” support he has received in recent days.
“It’s been amazing to see the support from so many people around the world, and overwhelming just to see how much Roscoe touched people and meant to people,” said Hamilton in Singapore.
“The kind messages that I’ve received have been really uplifting, so I’m really grateful for that. Anyone out there that knows what it’s like to lose a pet, you know how painful it is. I read somewhere that grief is the last act of love, and I’m definitely feeling that.”
Hamilton pointed to that support as a way to help him focus when he returns to the track.
“I’ve personally received a huge amount of support and that’s been overwhelming, and so allowing yourself to receive that, allowing yourself space to grieve, and also just remind yourself every day is going to get a bit better.
“It’s just trying to cultivate a positive attitude through the tough phase, but also I have spoken to loads of people who have been through that experience. My mum just lost her dog three months ago, I’ve got a friend that lost her dog three weeks ago.”
Hamilton then turned optimistic, pointing to the support he has received as a reason for feeling hopeful about humanity.
“Everyone in the world is experiencing stuff like this, but I think it’s been really beautiful just to see at a time in the world which is relatively dark outside of this paddock,” added Hamilton.
“There’s a lot of negativity, wars everywhere, conflicts going on everywhere, issues in all these governments and people are struggling. There’s a bigger disparity between poor and rich, there’s so many problems.
“But through this little experience, seeing that there’s a lot of empathy, there are empathetic people out there, there’s a lot of love, a lot of caring people out there in the world which gives me a lot of hope for mankind, if I’m really honest.”
As for the race itself, Hamilton also sounded optimistic. While he has yet to secure a grand prix podium this year — Hamilton won the F1 Sprint Race at the Chinese Grand Prix and finished third in the F1 Sprint Race at the Miami Grand Prix — the legendary driver feels “positive” heading into the weekend.
“I feel positive coming into this weekend,” added Hamilton. “It’s a track I’ve generally gone well at, and I’ve started to feel a lot better in the car since the summer break.
“However, the results haven’t shown that just yet but it’s going to happen, and I’m hoping it’s going to be this weekend.
“This is my first time driving a Ferrari at this track but, having known places like Baku, how the car reacts, hopefully I can start a couple of steps further ahead than I was in the last race, for example.”
Category: General Sports
