Legends in every sport require a similar sort of mentality, even though football and Formula 1 are on completely opposite ends of the sporting spectrum.
Of course, both Lewis Hamilton and Thierry Henry have won pretty much everything that their respective sports have to offer.
Victorious seven times over, the Formula 1 star is a world champion and holds a joint record for the feat with Michael Schumacher. As well as this, Hamilton also holds every single one of F1’s most impressive records, including the most career wins, podiums and pole positions.
Equally, the Arsenal legend is a World Cup winner, Champions League winner, and has taken home league winners’ medals from three of the biggest leagues in Europe.
Lewis Hamilton once compared his mentality to Thierry Henry during an interview with the Arsenal legend
During a 2015 interview that was held between the two sporting legends, Hamilton picked up on Henry’s ‘do or die’ mentality and drew a comparison between himself and the Frenchman.
The conversation took place after an exhibition 5-a-side football game, where the F1 star lined up against his footballing hero with a swathe of other legends on either team.
Despite Hamilton being subject to an overly eager challenge from Jamie Carragher, the then-Mercedes driver was able to hear Henry’s thoughts on his elite attitude.
Hamilton saw himself in the words, responding to Henry with, “I think we share the same mentality. You want to be the best. You have to go out there, and it’s do or die.
“You go 100% each time, and if your heart’s not in it, then you might as well not be there. I was very, very lucky I had that support, as Thierry did when he was younger.
“For me, it was about grabbing the opportunity with both hands. And fortunately, I had a good upbringing. I had my dad, who was there with me, to make sure that if I ever slipped or if I lost my balance, he would pick me back up.
“And I’m sure you had that support. You can’t do it without family, sometimes people need that bit of help. But I generally feel that nowadays people kind of just don’t want to do that work.
“They just want to be at the top. Without having to do some of the groundwork. That groundwork helped me create the foundation of which I’m able to perform today.”
Lewis Hamilton is a lifelong fan of Arsenal FC
The sit-down chat with Arsenal’s record goalscorer was a dream come true for the F1 star.
The Ferrari driver once explained why he supported Arsenal, citing his sister’s influence on him at a young age.
However, he doesn’t let his personal ties get mixed in with business, and, in 2022, was part of a consortium that bought a stake in Arsenal’s London rivals, Chelsea.
Hamilton’s current teammate at the Scuderia may have been jealous of the Briton’s feature with Henry, considering Charles Leclerc is a staunch fan of Ligue 1 club, AS Monaco.
The Frenchman began his career at the club based in F1’s jewel, before finding his feet on the world stage at some of the biggest clubs in Europe.
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