"He stood by me through thick and thin" - Lewis Hamilton talks about his relationship with race engineer Peter 'Bono' Bonnington

Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton opened up about his relationship with his race engineer Peter 'Bono' Bonnington and emphasized their mutual trust and support.

Bono was paired up with Hamilton as a senior race engineer when the latter joined the Silver Arrows in 2013. In their 12-year partnership, the British race engineer has played an instrumental role in helping his driver win six championships. Bono has also become popular among F1 fans for his catchphrase 'It's hammer time.'

During a fan interaction event in the Miami GP, Lewis Hamilton emphasized the importance of a strong relationship between a driver and his race engineer. He also highlighted the longevity of Bono's tenure, and how both have endured various challenges over the years.

"Bono and I, we've been through thick and thin together, and I love the guy. We've had such a great relationship. I think we have the longest standing engineer and driver relationship that's ever been in our sport. And that's something I'm really proud of," Hamilton said.

"He stood by me through thick and thin and vice versa, he’s been through some diffult times in his life," he added.

The seven-time world champion, who is set to part ways with Mercedes at the end of the season, is determined to end his journey with the team on a high:

"But just how you turn up weekend in weekend out is really key... He’s just head down at the desk always. And he’s just like my right hand man, he’s next to me all the time. So, trying to make sure I deliver as much as I can this year for the team."

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Exploring Bono's chances of joining Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari

After Lewis Hamilton announced his bombshell move to Ferrari for the upcoming season, there was plenty of speculation if his trusted race engineer, Bono, would follow suit.

Peter Bonnington boasts an impressive resume, with over two decades of experience in F1, having worked with both seven-time champions of the sport, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.

Following Hamilton's announcement, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff suggested that he would discuss Bono's future with the team in the coming months. While there is no official update yet, reports suggest gardening leave clauses will make it difficult for the senior race engineer to join Hamilton at Ferrari over the winter.

Meanwhile, Italian media (Formula Uno Analisi Technica) reports that Ferrari wants Lewis Hamilton to work with the existing engineers within the team, potentially teaming up with Carlos Sainz's current race engineer Riccardo Adami. The Italian has over 22 years of experience in Formula 1, having previously worked with Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel.