Lewis Hamilton

1. Who is Lewis Hamilton?
2. Lewis Hamilton’s junior journey
3. Lewis Hamilton’s Grand Prix journey (Formula 1)
4. AUTOhebdo's review of Lewis Hamilton
5. Learn more about Lewis Hamilton

1. Who is Lewis Hamilton?

Sir Lewis Hamilton is a British Formula 1 driver born on January 7, 1985 in Stevenage (United Kingdom). Co-record holder for the number of Formula 1 world championship titles with German legend Michael Schumacher, the seven-time crowned winner currently races for Mercedes and quite simply boasts the best track record in the history of his sport, of which he holds a number of records (victories, pole positions, etc.).

Lewis Hamilton © Antonin Vincent / DPPI

2. Lewis Hamilton’s junior journey

Arriving in motorsport via radio-controlled cars which he drove with talent and dexterity, Lewis Hamilton discovered karting in 1993. After his first successes on the national scene, he one day approached a certain Ron Dennis to offer him his services . Amused and seduced, the big boss of McLaren told him to call him back in a few years. Hamilton continued to string together victories and titles and joined the development program in Woking (Great Britain) at the age of 13 in 1998. The Englishman started in single-seaters during the 2001 season with a first experience in Formula Renault UK under the colors of the Manor Motorsport team.

Lewis Hamilton had just won a karting victory, 1996 ©Chris Dixon/DPPI

Winner of the British championship in 2003, Lewis Hamilton then moved up to the Formula 3 Euro Series where he won the title hands down (15 wins in 20 races) and the famous Formula 3 Masters of Zandvoort (Netherlands) with ASM in 2005. Promoted to the GP2 Series at ART Grand Prix the following season, he succeeded his former karting teammate and future great F1 rival Nico Rosberg on the list of winners by getting the better of Nelson Piquet Jr. At 21, Hamilton was ready for the big leap towards F1. That's good, McLaren has a free seat alongside Fernando Alonso, who arrived from Renault with two titles in his suitcases.

Lewis Hamilton, GP2 Series champion with ART Grand Prix in 2006 ©Gilles Levent / DPPI

3. Lewis Hamilton’s Grand Prix journey (Formula 1)

After hesitating between the veteran Pedro de la Rosa, who replaced Juan Pablo Montoya at short notice in 2006, the reserve Gary Paffett, and the hopeful Lewis Hamilton who had just won the GP2 title, McLaren opted for the 3rd option. Even if the Briton arrives in F1 preceded by a good reputation, no one, not even Ron Dennis, expects him to be up to speed so quickly.

However, from his first race at the 2007 Australian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton showed that he was not there to amuse the gallery with a daring overtake at the start of his double world champion teammate Fernando Alonso, and a first podium. in career. After 4 rounds and as many finishes in the leading trio, he is at the top of the championship. His first victory was only a matter of weeks and came on June 10, 2007 at the end of a completely crazy Canadian GP where Lewis Hamilton avoided all the pitfalls.

Lewis Hamilton in his McLaren in 2007 ©Gilles Levent / DPPI

The Englishman did it again a week later in the United States where tensions with Fernando Alonso, perceptible for a while, came to light. They will continue to escalate and will lead, among other things, to a technical-political-sporting scandal which will cost McLaren dearly and precipitate the break between the Spaniard and Woking. Despite this deleterious climate, Lewis Hamilton is hanging on in the fight for the title with two new successes. He enters the final meetings with a comfortable lead over Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari) but will lose everything in the final race.

First following an incredible silting in the pit lane during the Chinese Grand Prix, then a gearbox problem in Brazil where the Finn won and took the crown. Having come within one point of the title on his first attempt, Lewis Hamilton took his revenge, by the same margin, 12 months earlier. Author of 5 successes, he emerged victorious from a Homeric duel with Felipe Massa (Ferrari) whose unbreathable outcome at Interlagos (Brazilian Grand Prix) entered directly into the Pantheon of sport. If the continuation of his McLaren adventure will bring its share of podiums and success, Lewis Hamilton will never again really find himself in a position to challenge for the title with his favorite team.

Hamilton during his first F1 title ©Gilles Levent

In 2009, McLaren negotiated the new aerodynamic regulations poorly, but its leader still managed to hold on to two Grand Prix by forceps. The following three seasons, Hamilton formed a nice duo with Jenson Button but reliability concerns, and a slump during the 2011 campaign, prevented him from defeating Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel, new bosses of the grid.

Approached by Mercedes, which is looking for a second wind with its newly relaunched factory team, the 2008 champion finally lets himself be convinced by Niki Lauda's arguments. Many people think that Lewis Hamilton made a bad career choice; the Englishman has actually just made the best decision of his professional life. Because if Mercedes is not yet at the level of the best in 2013 for the last season of the naturally aspirated V8s, the German manufacturer has superbly anticipated and prepared the revolution of the 6L turbo hybrid V1,6s.

Untouchable, the Silver Arrows of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg are fighting for the 2014 title between them. The Briton had the last word on the evening of the Abu Dhabi final, the scene of his 11th victory of the year. The following year, Hamilton calmly dominated his German teammate and won his third world crown with 3 rounds to go. Rosberg, however, took advantage of the end of the 4 season to string together 2015 successes and launch the dynamic that would take him to the title of world champion the following year.

The 2016 campaign is undoubtedly one of the most exciting in recent seasons with a fratricidal fight between Mercedes drivers who are still untouchable for the rest of the grid. Even if he finished with one more victory than his best enemy (10-9), Lewis Hamilton failed 5 points behind Nico Rosberg, who retired a few days after his coronation.

Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton in Melbourne © Eric Vargiolu / DPPI

Now supported by the solid but harmless Valtteri Bottas, Hamilton will string together four titles in a row, the first two acquired after an intense but too short fight with Sebastian Vettel who now defends the colors of a Ferrari team in clear recovery of form. From 2019, however, Red Bull and its new Honda engine replace the Scuderia in the role of the main competitors of the impregnable fortress Mercedes.

Despite the obvious talent of Max Verstappen, the Dutchman does not yet have the material at his disposal to respond to the mastery of the Lewis Hamilton-Mercedes steamroller, who is reaching peak form during a masterful 2020 season. At the Nürburgring, Lewis Hamilton equaled Michael Schumacher's record of 91 victories, then eclipsed it at the following round in Portugal. In Turkey, he delivered a demonstration of which he had the secret in the rain to win a historic 7th world champion title.

Only a Covid-19 infection will temporarily stop his incredible victorious march at the end of the season. During the New Year celebrations, Lewis Hamilton, the modest kid from Stevenage, was officially knighted by the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, who had already been a member of the Order of the British Empire since his first title in 1.

Lewis Hamilton decorated by the Queen of England ©Royal Family

Holder of a handful of records in Formula 1, Sir Lewis Hamilton is also very involved in many causes dear to his heart, such as veganism, the defense of minorities, the fight against racism and discrimination, and the promotion of 'equal opportunities. After extending his lease at Mercedes late and for the 2021 season, Hamilton has just signed a new two-year contract with his current employer which guarantees his presence on the grid until at least 2023.

In 2021, the Briton undoubtedly delivered one of his best seasons, during which he reached 100 poles and 100 victories. But this campaign will certainly have led him to one of his biggest disappointments in Formula 1. Opposed to Max Verstappen who this time enjoys a particularly well-born Red Bull, Lewis Hamilton turns into a hunter throughout the season , he who was nevertheless used to being the hunted pilot. While he is up to 32 points behind after the Austrian Grand Prix where Max Verstappen won, Lewis Hamilton and his Dutch rival will compete in Act I of their titanic fight at Silverstone.

Start of the Grand Prix at Silverstone © Antonin Vincent / DPPI

Both starting on the front row, the two men touch each other at Stowe and Verstappen ends up in the wall! Despite a time penalty, Lewis Hamilton won and completely relaunched himself in the title race. Act II of the Homeric confrontation will take place in Monza. At the chicane of the first turn, the two men ended up in the gravel trap, truly offering one of the images of the season, with their cars placed one on top of the other.

After the Mexican Grand Prix in November 2021, and with only four rounds remaining, Max Verstappen appears to be heading towards his first world champion title. The Dutchman leads 9 victories to 5 against Lewis Hamilton who is nevertheless still in ambush. Mercedes is finishing the year strong, as is its British star driver. Lewis Hamilton indeed won three times in a row in Brazil, Qatar then in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. Until returning to a perfect tie on points with Max Verstappen before the final match in Abu Dhabi.

Clash between the leaders of the F1 championship ©Florent Gooden / DPPI

At the Abu Dhabi GP, the last lap will be remembered. While Lewis Hamilton was flying towards a clear and flawless victory, Nicholas Latifi's accident five laps from the end turned everything upside down. After banning him, the race direction finally allowed the latecomers to split, which allowed Max Verstappen to find himself in the exhausts of Lewis Hamilton, ready to pounce at the safety car restart. On much fresher and softer rubber, the Dutchman overtook Hamilton at turn 5 and defended perfectly at turns 6 and 9 to win his first world championship title, the first for Red Bull Racing since 2013.

Without having made the slightest mistake in Abu Dhabi, Lewis Hamilton lost an eighth world champion title that was in his grasp. The Briton had a lot of difficulty recovering from it, and his sad, infinite feeling after the race perfectly attested to this. It was the first time since the coronation of his ex-teammate Nico Rosberg in 2016 that Lewis Hamilton let a world champion title slip away. The silence of the English champion, throughout the winter of 2022, left rumors surrounding a possible early retirement. But Lewis Hamilton is sure to be there in 2022, at Mercedes, alongside George Russell.

In Abu Dhabi, Lewis Hamilton does not hide his disappointment ©F1

However, after Abu Dhabi 2021 is proving to be very laborious, both for Lewis Hamilton and for Mercedes. The Silver Arrows miss the turn of the new technical regulations, introduced in 2022, and fail to regain their former domination. The Briton, still stunned by the loss of his 8th title, is dominated by a more regular George Russell. That season, the seven-time world champion did not achieve any victory, a first in his Formula 1 career!

The following year will not be more glorious: Mercedes is still incomprehensible with its car, and does not allow Lewis Hamilton to fight for the title. Nevertheless, the Briton regained his former form and, thanks to exemplary consistency, finished 3rd in the championship in 2023, still without a victory but with a pole position, in Hungary.

At the start of 2024, Lewis Hamilton created a sensation by signing with Ferrari for the 2025 season, he who was thought to be linked for life with Mercedes. A dream that will come true for the English driver. However, it is with a whetted appetite and a thirst for success that Sir Lewis Hamilton will set out again to conquer an 8th world title for his final season with Mercedes.

4. AUTOhebdo's review of Lewis Hamilton

Undisputed and undeniable leader of the field for years, Lewis Hamilton can not only boast of having the best track record in Formula 1, but also of transcending the boundaries of a sport that is sometimes too elitist and centered on itself. At the age of 39, he is naturally closer to retirement than to his beginnings in the discipline, but the seven-time champion shows no sign of letting up, despite fierce competition from Max Verstappen and Red Bull.

An ultra-complete driver, as fast on a flying lap as he is comfortable with tire management and sharp in his overtaking, Lewis Hamilton narrowly missed out on an eighth world champion title in 2021. But there is no doubt that the Briton will be thirsty for revenge and that his quest for an 8th title, which would definitively place him alone at the top of Olympus, will guide him in the coming years. A complex and sometimes soupy personality off the track, Sir Lewis Hamilton has the merit of leaving no one indifferent. Let's take advantage of him while he's still active!