“I don’t aspire to be like other drivers – I aspire to be unique in my own way.”
Lewis Hamilton has equalled the number of world championships to Germany’s Michael Schumacher. Lewis’s journey has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. Few would wager a bet that a young boy from the town of Stevenage would go down in history. He dared to demand his seat on the grid from Ron Dennis at the age of 10, and he entered himself into contention of being not only one of the greatest racers of all time, but he is also one of the greatest sportspeople of our times.
The aspect that makes Hamilton’s success journey much sweeter is that he is the only black driver in the history of this predominantly white sport. The British superstar was introduced to karting at the tender age of 6, and ever since, he shows no signs of slowing down. Hamilton slowly built his way up from his humble karting beginnings to F3, GP2 and the coveted Mclaren seat on the 2007 F1 grid.
The Brit had a stunning start to the season, and he saw himself leading the drivers’ standings following the Spanish Grand Prix, where he set a record for the youngest driver to be leading the charts. However, things didn’t go as planned in the upcoming races, and Hamilton saw himself finish second in the standings.
The following year 2008 is when Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton announced his arrival in the sporting world as he claimed his first world championship, before adding six more titles to his golden board in the last seven years. Many believe that 2020 has been the most successful year of his career due to a range of reasons. He not only faced tough competition from his teammate Valterri Bottas, but he has also had to win the mental battles off the field in unprecedented times like these, and he has come out on top each time.
He has set new benchmarks by becoming the racer with most career wins, titles, and pole positions. He has also used his status and power to be the voice of those suffering, and he is an advocate for multiple social issues like climate change, racism, equality, etc. Although Lewis turns 36 in January, he is definitely in his prime, as proved by his title in the wet and tricky conditions at the Turkish GP, and he remains an icon, a visionary, and a record-setter in the racing industry.
