Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari · British · 7× World Champion
The most decorated driver in F1 history. Seven world titles defined by clinical precision, wet-weather mastery, and an unrivalled competitive hunger.
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Career path
Career
Lewis Hamilton arrived in Formula 1 in 2007 as the most hyped rookie in the sport's history, and he immediately justified it. In his debut season at McLaren he pushed world champion Fernando Alonso to a third-place finish in the championship — as a first-year driver — and came within a single point of winning the title. It was an entrance unlike any other, and it announced not just a driver of exceptional talent but one who appeared immune to pressure at the highest level.
His first world championship came in 2008 in the most dramatic fashion possible: on the final corner of the final lap of the final race in Brazil. Hamilton overtook Timo Glock in the wet at Interlagos to take the fifth place he needed to claim the title by a single point from Felipe Massa. It was a conclusion so cinematic that it defined the early image of Hamilton as a driver who seemed destined to be at the centre of Formula 1's greatest moments.
The years with Mercedes from 2013 onward transformed Hamilton from a very good Formula 1 champion into the statistical greatest of all time. Six more titles between 2014 and 2020, including a 2019 and 2020 run so dominant that his records for most wins and most pole positions became essentially unreachable for any current driver. His 2020 season — 11 wins from 17 races in a shortened pandemic campaign — was the most authoritative individual performance in the hybrid era.
Legendary Hamilton drives
Silverstone Circuit · Silverstone, England
A masterclass in wet-to-dry transitions. Hamilton led from pole while nursing a puncture on the final lap to claim victory — a moment of sheer willpower.
Hungaroring · Budapest, Hungary
Pole by nearly a second, lights-to-flag domination, and a record-equalling eighth win at a single circuit. Hamilton at the absolute peak of his powers.
Marina Bay Street Circuit · Singapore
Hamilton's pole lap at Marina Bay was hailed as one of the greatest of his career — a banzai effort he converted into a title-defining victory under the lights.
Baku City Circuit · Baku, Azerbaijan
Handed the lead by a late puncture for Bottas, Hamilton pounced to win a wild Baku race he had looked set to lose — a swing of fortune that reshaped the title fight.
Sochi Autodrom · Sochi, Russia
Hamilton inherited the lead through a Virtual Safety Car cycle and controlled it to the flag at Sochi — a strategic Mercedes win on his way to a sixth title.
Las Vegas Street Circuit · Las Vegas, USA
A storming drive to second under the Vegas lights, completing a Mercedes one-two on a cold night that finally lit up the Silver Arrows.
Silverstone Circuit · Silverstone, England
In his second season in red, Hamilton lit up his home crowd with a P3 qualifying lap at Silverstone — just 0.347s adrift of Antonelli's pole and a breath behind Ferrari team-mate Leclerc — putting a Prancing Horse right in the fight at the front.