"Kanye, Jay-Z, Drake, Prince" - Lewis Hamilton claims music 'gets him in the zone'

Lewis Hamilton says that music from Kanye, Jay-Z, and Prince helps him get in the zone before races. The seven-time world champion revealed his music preferences during a video tour of the Petronas facility in Italy. Hamilton, however, says that he doesn’t have any specific pre-race “rituals” like other drivers.

Most F1 drivers have “rituals” – something that they do before getting into the car at every single race – that they have developed throughout their careers. Most notably, Daniel Ricciardo likes to sit in a squatting position beside the pit wall and listen to music.

Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel revealed some of his habits and rituals before the race in a recent session on Formula 1's official Twitter handle. He said:

“I need to go to the toilet before the race, the races can be long so. At least it’s the most consistent ritual.”

“I, you know, sometimes listen to music, sometimes more or sometimes less and I do some skipping, some warmup exercises before getting in the car.”

“I only get in the car from the left side, never from the right, I don’t know why, but it’s just like that, so you could call that a ritual as well.”

Other drivers simply like to warm up before the race, or just have a quiet moment to help them focus and get in the "zone" for lights out.

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Stefano Domenicali sure about Lewis Hamilton’s 2022 F1 return

F1 boss Stefano Domenicali feels that Lewis Hamilton will return to the sport in 2022 with “even more desire” to win more titles.

In an interview with the Italian daily La Gazzetta dello Sport, Domenicali said:

“I’m sure he will recharge his batteries and come back with even more desire than before to win an eighth world title.”

Following the controversial title decider in Abu Dhabi, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff had hinted that a “disillusioned” Lewis Hamilton might decide against returning to the sport for next season.

Meanwhile, according to several media reports from Italy, Lewis Hamilton has reportedly told Mercedes that he will not be retiring.