Bernd Maylander is a man who has been driving a safety car for 23 years. In the course of his career, this man had a lot of interesting moments that he will never forget on the F1 tracks. It was Maylander who made reference to Lewis Hamilton in an interview with Auto Motor und Sport.
At the start, he revealed a surprising fact about Hamilton. “Lewis always hides a bit behind the car,” Maylander said, as quoted by planetf1.com “You always have to look into the blind spot – where is he?” Maylander was also part of the famous race in Abu Dhabi in 2021.
His reaction was interesting. “I walked through the hospitality area with my helmet on and sat down at the back of the paddock first,” Maylander said. “I had to be on my own first to think ‘what just happened?'” Charlie Whiting called him when he was only 27 years old, and it happened in 1999.
“After five minutes I was out of the office again and had an extra job. I didn’t know that you could get paid for the job!
Bernd Maylander and his moments
Maylander also recalled some moments that he will never forget, and there were many of them.
"The Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji in 2007 was memorable. Also, the Canadian Grand Prix in 2011, where I led for almost 50% of the race! I didn’t get any trophy, but I did almost miss my flight home because the race ran so late.
But that’s my job, to keep everyone calm and safe. To lead the field and control the race. The 2019 German Grand Prix is another example. It was a great race, I was on the limit. I went wide in a few corners, for safety reasons.
In a race car, you have to stay on the track, but in the Safety Car, it’s paramount that you don’t crash”.