Lewis Hamilton names most exhilarating corner he's ever raced

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Lewis Hamilton has described the “awesome” thrill of racing through Silverstone’s famous Maggotts and Becketts section, describing the corners as “beautiful”.

Turns 11 and 13 at the British Grand Prix track have become among the most notable on the Formula 1 calendar since the race settled in Northamptonshire in 1987.

Until 1991, the corners were relatively distinct but cars now take on the sequence almost as one at high speed, flying into the section after the equally quick Copse corner.

And Hamilton, eight times a winner on home soil, is still enthralled when he gets the chance to test himself at Silverstone.

“They are not treacherous,” Hamilton said on YouTube show Hot Ones. “As racing drivers, we don’t look at them as treacherous - we are thrill seekers.

“For me, it’s awesome, you want to go through the corners faster. I remember the first time I drove a Formula 1 car in 2006: Copse is normally a corner you take at full throttle at 190mph. I was thinking, ‘you’ve got take it hard, go for it’. They were really impressed that I went for it so much.

“But Maggotts and Becketts is just the most beautiful, fast-flowing section. You’re full speed all the way in, doing 190, 200 [mph] or something like that, and that’s where you get the most G-force. Your body is being thrown around, your insides are being thrown around. But when you hit the sweet spot, it’s like poetry in motion.”

Hamilton won his first British Grand Prix in 2008 at a track he grew up little more than an hour away from en route to his breakthrough maiden world title.

He last won the race in 2021 and will hope to better last year’s third-placed finish at Silverstone when the 2024 season arrives at the track in early July.

The seven-time world champion is currently eighth in the Drivers’ Championship standings.