An emotional Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has revealed about his first brush with death as a nine-year-old kart racer as fears continued to grow about the fate of Marussia racer Jules Bianchi following his horror smash in Japanese Grand Prix.
Hamilton has called it the hardest week of his life. Emotions in the paddock are still raw as the popular Frenchman remains in a Japanese intensive care unit, critical but stable with his family at his bedside.
Hamilton said that when he was nine years old, he saw a young driver die when he was racing karts. He said that one of his good friend's good friend stopped racing, but added that has never been something that has entered his mind.
Hamilton said that that was a very traumatic time for him as a kid. Even now, he said that he can remember standing on the bank beside a track with him with their suits on just before a race, all laughing and joking.
The Brit said that the next thing he knew he was at his funeral, adding that it was the first time he had ever been to one. He said that it is very hard to put that out of his mind at the moment, after what happened to Bianchi.
Hamilton said that things like this really open up ones view a bit, adding that bad things happen to people, but the world keeps going, which is really sad in a way.
But, the Mercedes racer added that it does not make him rethink wanting to be a Formula One driver, as he loves this sport and is the thing he does best.
Hamilton said that Bianchi is a real racer and he thinks that the Frenchman would want them to carry on, and added that he knows that is how he would feel about it if anything happened to him.
