To celebrate Lewis Hamilton's 28 Birthday on the 7th January 2013, I have put together my Top 5 Moments of his Formula 1 career.
Lewis burst on to the scene in 2007, debuting in the fast McLaren and impressing from the get go. Going in to his 28th Birthday, he is a world champion, winner of 21 races and has scored 913 points. He also has a new challenge, with the highly talked about move to Mercedes.
There is no doubt that picking 5 moments of such a successful career has proved to be very difficult, and many great races and wins will fail to get a mention in this post. However there are a few stand out highlights and others where I feel he performed better and had more work to do in comparison to other wins where he led from start to finish.
Here are my Top 5 moments of Lewis Hamilton's career (so far).
5) Debut Victory in Canada
Year: 2007
Location: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Canada
A drivers first win of their career is very special, but what made Hamilton's even better was that fact that it came in just his sixth race weekend. It was a win that came as no surprise however, he had been fast from the outset and had just finished second in Monaco, making it four second place finishes in the past four races. From the get go you could tell Lewis was one to watch at the Canadian Grand Prix. He qualified on pole position and led off the line. He had to fend off Fernando Alonso for a short while, but the attack of the Spaniard led to a number of errors that dropped him back. He was a formidable force around the high speed circuit, stretching out huge leads. However these were continuously slashed by safety cars, the most notable safety car period being for the huge crash suffered by Robert Kubica. Hamilton dealt well with the variables of the race and crossed the line well clear of Nick Heidfeld in second. A brilliant win that was executed by perfection, rare for someone who was racing in their debut Formula 1 season.
4) German Grand Prix Victory
Year: 2011
Location: Nurburgring, Nurburg, Germany.
Hamilton's victory in the 2011 German Grand Prix was one that, for me, really showed his pace and speed, as well as overtaking ability. What made it even more impressive was the fact that Hamilton himself had already said after Friday Practice We definitely can't challenge them for pole", they already had doubts yet he managed to qualify just half a tenth down on Mark Webber's pole time. Hamilton took the lead on the run to the first turn, thanks to a rather slow start by Webber. He managed to extend his lead but lost out in the pit stops, dropping behind the Red Bull of Webber. He soon displaced the Aussie in the second round of stops, setting some blistering lap times to take the lead despite Webber attempting the tactical "undercut". The Aussie tried to get by but Hamilton drove a good, defensive few corners to hold him off. However Alonso had been making quiet progress through the field and emerged from his second stop in the lead. He emerged just ahead of Hamilton, the Brit needed to get past and he did so in spectacular fashion. Lewis took the outside line for turn 2 and used his warmer tyres to drive around the outside of Alonso, despite being off the racing line and on the marbles. From that moment on he led with ease and crossed the line with time to spare.
3) Brilliant Debut Down Under
Year: 2007
Location: Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia
A Formula 1 Driver who finishes in the points on their debut is seen as being pretty special, but it is very rare to see someone finish on the podium in their first race. We all knew at the time that Hamilton was fast, but despite being in the front running McLaren many did not expect him to finish on the podium (myself included). Racing alongside double world champion Fernando Alonso, Lewis managed to qualify three tenths off his team mate in fourth. Off the line, he dropped a place to Kubica and decided to take the outside line for the first turn. The risk paid off as he swept around the outside of first Kubica, then Heidfeld and then Alonso. Slotting in to second position, he managed to hold that position up until the first stops. Alonso emerged from the pit lane ahead of his rookie team mate, but Lewis continued to push and crossed the line in third place. He became the first person to finish on the podium on their debut since the 1996 Australian Grand Prix, where Jacques Villeneuve impressed on a similar level. It was a hugely commendable drive for someone who was making their debut, he had the car and most importantly used its potential, while also not making mistakes.
2) Hamilton Wins on Home Soil
Year: 2008
Location: Silverstone Circuit, England.
This race was definitely the most dominant victory of Hamilton's career. The British weather lived up to its reputation, race day saw huge amounts of rain that created hugely challenging conditions that caught out even the best of drivers. What made this race even more incredible was the fact that throughout the whole 60 laps, Hamilton made just 1 mistake when he went off track at Abbey corner. Lewis qualified fourth on the grid but had a good launch on his intermediate tyres and jumped up to second, making the slightest of contact with race leader Kovalainen. Lewis made his move on lap five and took the lead after a stunning move at Stowe. Raikkonen had moved ahead of fellow Finn Kovalainen and was right with Hamilton when they pitted for the first time. McLaren predicted more rain ahead and switched him to new intermediates, but Ferrari did not change Kimi's tyres. It proved to be the wrong decision as rain started to fall as they emerged from the pit lane. As the Finn dropped back, Hamilton extended his lead to over 30 seconds by his second stop. At that point the rain really began to fall, but Lewis opted for the intermediates again. Some chose the extreme wet tyres and closed in, but Hamilton already had such a large gap that he was unchallenged. What made the drive even more impressive was that Lewis was by far the fastest driver on intermediate tyres, crossing the line over a minute ahead of his nearest rival and lapping all but two drivers. It really was an incredible drive and one that emphasised the talent he had.
1) Last Lap Title Win
Year: 2008
Location: Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
This was the race where everyone held their breath. So many emotions were felt by the British fans, as well as the driver and his team, as the title was in reach, slipped away and then incredibly was taken back at the last corner of the last lap. It was a truly incredible race that had me jumping around for joy as Hamilton crossed the line to win the 2008 World Championship, something I and many others will never forget. It was a tough race too, with mixed conditions and close racing. Lining up fourth on the grid, he maintained his position on the first lap. It was a position that he needed to keep, any lower than fifth would give the title to Massa. Cars started on intermediate tyres but the track began to dry out and by lap 11 the whole field had pitted. Lewis emerged from his stop behind the Force India of Fisichella, who had pitted early on. It took seven laps to pass the Italian, by that time Lewis was holding fifth position. That became fourth when Vettel pitted due to a light second stint, before the championship contenders followed him in a few laps later. When the pit stops had all panned out, Hamilton was lying in fourth position but Vettel was closing in on him. Rain began to fall on lap 63 and drivers dived in to the pits to change to the intermediate tyre, with the exception of Glock who stayed out on dry tyres. As the rain intensified, Hamilton slid wide and let Vettel through. He desperately tried to get fifth place back, but Sebastian continued to move away. It was the last corner of the last lap, and Massa had already crossed the line. There were celebrations in the Ferrari pits as they thought their driver had taken the title. However Lewis came across the slow Toyota of Glock, who had been tiptoeing around on dry tyres. He passed him around the outside to move in to the crucial fifth place and crossed the line to be crowned 2008 World Champion. It was a stunning race and a hugely exciting and dramatic climax to the season, it may not have been his best race but it was certainly had the best end result.
Those are my Top 5 moments of Lewis Hamilton's career, what are yours? Comment them below, Tweet me them @JackLeslieF1 or comment on the link post on Facebook.
Lewis burst on to the scene in 2007, debuting in the fast McLaren and impressing from the get go. Going in to his 28th Birthday, he is a world champion, winner of 21 races and has scored 913 points. He also has a new challenge, with the highly talked about move to Mercedes.
There is no doubt that picking 5 moments of such a successful career has proved to be very difficult, and many great races and wins will fail to get a mention in this post. However there are a few stand out highlights and others where I feel he performed better and had more work to do in comparison to other wins where he led from start to finish.
Here are my Top 5 moments of Lewis Hamilton's career (so far).
5) Debut Victory in CanadaYear: 2007
Location: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Canada
A drivers first win of their career is very special, but what made Hamilton's even better was that fact that it came in just his sixth race weekend. It was a win that came as no surprise however, he had been fast from the outset and had just finished second in Monaco, making it four second place finishes in the past four races. From the get go you could tell Lewis was one to watch at the Canadian Grand Prix. He qualified on pole position and led off the line. He had to fend off Fernando Alonso for a short while, but the attack of the Spaniard led to a number of errors that dropped him back. He was a formidable force around the high speed circuit, stretching out huge leads. However these were continuously slashed by safety cars, the most notable safety car period being for the huge crash suffered by Robert Kubica. Hamilton dealt well with the variables of the race and crossed the line well clear of Nick Heidfeld in second. A brilliant win that was executed by perfection, rare for someone who was racing in their debut Formula 1 season.
4) German Grand Prix VictoryYear: 2011
Location: Nurburgring, Nurburg, Germany.
Hamilton's victory in the 2011 German Grand Prix was one that, for me, really showed his pace and speed, as well as overtaking ability. What made it even more impressive was the fact that Hamilton himself had already said after Friday Practice We definitely can't challenge them for pole", they already had doubts yet he managed to qualify just half a tenth down on Mark Webber's pole time. Hamilton took the lead on the run to the first turn, thanks to a rather slow start by Webber. He managed to extend his lead but lost out in the pit stops, dropping behind the Red Bull of Webber. He soon displaced the Aussie in the second round of stops, setting some blistering lap times to take the lead despite Webber attempting the tactical "undercut". The Aussie tried to get by but Hamilton drove a good, defensive few corners to hold him off. However Alonso had been making quiet progress through the field and emerged from his second stop in the lead. He emerged just ahead of Hamilton, the Brit needed to get past and he did so in spectacular fashion. Lewis took the outside line for turn 2 and used his warmer tyres to drive around the outside of Alonso, despite being off the racing line and on the marbles. From that moment on he led with ease and crossed the line with time to spare.
3) Brilliant Debut Down UnderYear: 2007
Location: Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia
A Formula 1 Driver who finishes in the points on their debut is seen as being pretty special, but it is very rare to see someone finish on the podium in their first race. We all knew at the time that Hamilton was fast, but despite being in the front running McLaren many did not expect him to finish on the podium (myself included). Racing alongside double world champion Fernando Alonso, Lewis managed to qualify three tenths off his team mate in fourth. Off the line, he dropped a place to Kubica and decided to take the outside line for the first turn. The risk paid off as he swept around the outside of first Kubica, then Heidfeld and then Alonso. Slotting in to second position, he managed to hold that position up until the first stops. Alonso emerged from the pit lane ahead of his rookie team mate, but Lewis continued to push and crossed the line in third place. He became the first person to finish on the podium on their debut since the 1996 Australian Grand Prix, where Jacques Villeneuve impressed on a similar level. It was a hugely commendable drive for someone who was making their debut, he had the car and most importantly used its potential, while also not making mistakes.
Year: 2008
Location: Silverstone Circuit, England.
This race was definitely the most dominant victory of Hamilton's career. The British weather lived up to its reputation, race day saw huge amounts of rain that created hugely challenging conditions that caught out even the best of drivers. What made this race even more incredible was the fact that throughout the whole 60 laps, Hamilton made just 1 mistake when he went off track at Abbey corner. Lewis qualified fourth on the grid but had a good launch on his intermediate tyres and jumped up to second, making the slightest of contact with race leader Kovalainen. Lewis made his move on lap five and took the lead after a stunning move at Stowe. Raikkonen had moved ahead of fellow Finn Kovalainen and was right with Hamilton when they pitted for the first time. McLaren predicted more rain ahead and switched him to new intermediates, but Ferrari did not change Kimi's tyres. It proved to be the wrong decision as rain started to fall as they emerged from the pit lane. As the Finn dropped back, Hamilton extended his lead to over 30 seconds by his second stop. At that point the rain really began to fall, but Lewis opted for the intermediates again. Some chose the extreme wet tyres and closed in, but Hamilton already had such a large gap that he was unchallenged. What made the drive even more impressive was that Lewis was by far the fastest driver on intermediate tyres, crossing the line over a minute ahead of his nearest rival and lapping all but two drivers. It really was an incredible drive and one that emphasised the talent he had.
1) Last Lap Title WinYear: 2008
Location: Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
This was the race where everyone held their breath. So many emotions were felt by the British fans, as well as the driver and his team, as the title was in reach, slipped away and then incredibly was taken back at the last corner of the last lap. It was a truly incredible race that had me jumping around for joy as Hamilton crossed the line to win the 2008 World Championship, something I and many others will never forget. It was a tough race too, with mixed conditions and close racing. Lining up fourth on the grid, he maintained his position on the first lap. It was a position that he needed to keep, any lower than fifth would give the title to Massa. Cars started on intermediate tyres but the track began to dry out and by lap 11 the whole field had pitted. Lewis emerged from his stop behind the Force India of Fisichella, who had pitted early on. It took seven laps to pass the Italian, by that time Lewis was holding fifth position. That became fourth when Vettel pitted due to a light second stint, before the championship contenders followed him in a few laps later. When the pit stops had all panned out, Hamilton was lying in fourth position but Vettel was closing in on him. Rain began to fall on lap 63 and drivers dived in to the pits to change to the intermediate tyre, with the exception of Glock who stayed out on dry tyres. As the rain intensified, Hamilton slid wide and let Vettel through. He desperately tried to get fifth place back, but Sebastian continued to move away. It was the last corner of the last lap, and Massa had already crossed the line. There were celebrations in the Ferrari pits as they thought their driver had taken the title. However Lewis came across the slow Toyota of Glock, who had been tiptoeing around on dry tyres. He passed him around the outside to move in to the crucial fifth place and crossed the line to be crowned 2008 World Champion. It was a stunning race and a hugely exciting and dramatic climax to the season, it may not have been his best race but it was certainly had the best end result.
Those are my Top 5 moments of Lewis Hamilton's career, what are yours? Comment them below, Tweet me them @JackLeslieF1 or comment on the link post on Facebook.
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