Yas Marina (United Arab Emirates) (AFP)

After its eleventh success of the season at the 21st and last Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, the now six-time world champion Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) is pleased to "finish (2019) on the right foot."

Q: What is your feeling after this overwhelming victory?

A: "What an amazing year, and what an incredible time with this team." After winning the Constructors and Drivers Championships, it was really important for us to keep pushing.We did not have the perfect car, so we were still trying to push back It's the best way to end the season, on the right foot (...) I'm really grateful to my team who pushed all year and never lost sight of the goal. all of us share a common goal and we inspired each other to keep pushing and striving for perfection, so incredibly grateful to everyone. "

Q: Did you think you could impose yourself with such a lead (16 sec 772/1000 on the second, Max Verstappen)?

A: "No, I certainly did not expect such a pace advantage, our race pace was good enough and I was told we could have a one or two tenths advantage, but in the race, we had a little more than that. (...) Towards the end, I said to myself: + I have to push again to see if I can extract more performance from the car + I would have just liked some fights, like the one of these guys (Verstappen and Charles Leclerc, second and third, Editor's note) (...) I'm sure we're going to have great races together, we've had great races this year, Max and I So congratulations to them for their continued rise, I'm excited to be among these guys and to fight them next year. "

Q: Your contract with Mercedes ends at the end of the 2020 season and you wonder if you could go to Ferrari. Is this an option that you consider and that you have already discussed?

A: "What happens behind closed doors is by nature private but it's been many years that I have not considered other options (that Mercedes, Ed) .We have drawn straight our route and, to be Frankly, I think we're still on this path and there is not much that can change that, but I think there's no harm in ... I know Toto ( Wolff, Mercedes's boss, Ed.) Is also looking at options for his future and he alone will know what's best for him and his family, so I'm waiting to see what he's doing. where I am, so deciding to do something else would certainly not be an easy and quick decision, but of course, I think it's naturally smart and wise for me to ask myself and think about what I want ... if it's the last period or stage in my career, what I want is to continue to win, I want to be able to keep fighting with these guys ( Verstappen and Leclerc) too. I can not really tell you more about what will happen in the future. "

Interviewed at a press conference.

© 2019 AFP