ICON Legends – Lewis Hamilton – F1 Phenomenon

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While there will never be a unanimous answer to the argument surrounding the greatest ever British sportsperson, there’s no denying that Lewis Hamilton would be near the top of most people’s lists.

Since emerging as a Formula One star back in 2008, he’s established himself as one of the sport’s greats. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven world titles and he also holds the record for the most Grand Prix wins with an astonishing 105.

He was the first ever black F1 driver and his first win in 2008 made him the youngest ever champion at the time. While his racing career is still very much alive, it seems only right to make him the latest addition to our ICON hall of fame.

Bursting onto the scene

Plenty of drivers take their time to get to grips with the world of Formula One, but Hamilton couldn’t have been any different. After signing with McLaren, the rookie started his professional career with a bang, finishing on the podium in each of his opening nine races.

He won an astonishing four Grands Prix in his maiden year as he came close to winning the title, but he ultimately missed out to eventual champion Kimi Räikkönen. Not one to let the disappointment of missing out extinguish his motivation, Hamilton picked up where he left off as he started the 2008 season meaning business.

He raced to victory in the opener in Australia, which was the first of five remarkable wins that included his first triumph at Silverstone in the British Grand Prix. The title came down to the final day and with Hamilton’s nearest rival Felipe Massa winning his hometown race in Brazil, he looked destined for another runner-up trophy.

But a fifth-placed finish was enough for the Brit to top the leaderboard by a solitary point and become the youngest-ever F1 champion at the age of 23. Sadly, that record was eclipsed by Sebastian Vettel just two years later.

Dominance with Mercedes

Despite a whirlwind two years, Hamilton failed to continue his momentum in the wake of his first title. However, things all changed when he made the switch to Mercedes in 2013. Just a year later, and six years after his first, he claimed his second title in a dominant year that saw him win 11 races, including six of the final seven.

That phenomenal triumph was the beginning of a period of dominance for Hamilton and Mercedes. The superstar claimed an incredible six Drivers’ Championship titles in seven years between 2014 and 2020, with Nico Rosberg’s victory in 2016 Hamilton’s only failure.

Hamilton’s complete obliteration of all who challenged him took him to seven titles, level with the iconic Michael Schumacher in the all-time rankings. He’s always insisted he won’t call it a day until he’s the undisputed greatest of all time. Yet with no victory in four years and Max Verstappen eclipsing him in recent years, it’s fair to say that time is not on Hamilton’s side.

Hometown glory

Home advantage can give competitors an edge in all sports and when it comes to the British Grand Prix, Hamilton clearly steps it up a gear when on home soil. He’s won the iconic race at Silverstone a record nine times, including his most recent outing just two months ago.

That recent win came an astonishing 16 years after his first, which was in his maiden tile-winning season back in 2008 in difficult conditions. Despite the wet weather, Hamilton raced his way up the pack and eventually came out on top ahead of Nick Heidfeld.

Competitive rivalries

While the ambition to win as many titles as possible was undoubtedly the primary goal fuelling Hamilton’s success, it’s fair to say that he may not have been pushed to perform at his very best without the various rivalries he’s shared on the track.

Throughout different periods of his career, Hamilton has been involved in intense conflicts with the likes of Vettel, Rosberg and Verstappen. In fact, the 2016 season that saw Rosberg take the crown ahead of Hamilton culminated in a monumental final battle in Abu Dhabi, before the German surprisingly announced his retirement.

In recent years, Hamilton has enjoyed a rivalry with Verstappen, who has established himself as the world’s best by winning the last three F1 titles. The pair have engaged in countless clashes and their competitiveness resulted in a contentious crash at the 2021 British Grand Prix.

Ageing like a fine win

Hamilton will be 40 by the time the 2025 season gets underway and while most drivers would be thinking about calling it a day, he’s already got his sights set on next season.

He’s now in the home stretch of his Mercedes career, having agreed to switch allegiances to Ferrari next year. Hamilton continues to prove that age is just a number and while Verstappen looks set to win his fourth consecutive title, Hamilton will still harbour ambitions of topping the pile this year.

Not content with wowing his home crowd, he followed up his win at Silverstone with a pole in Hungary and a second victory in three races the following week in Belgium. Hamilton has made it very clear that he wants to win number eight and he’ll be hoping the move to Ferrari will help him achieve that dream. But even if he remains on seven by the time he walks away, there’s no doubt that he’ll always be one of the best drivers to ever do it.

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