Two Sundays ago, Lewis Hamilton, the British racing driver took the chequered flag at the Turkish Formula One (F1) Grand Prix. The 94th victory of Hamilton’s F1 career, secured the 2020 Title, thus, drawing him level with Michael Schumacher’s seven crowns, and has spawned the great debate as to his rightful place in sporting history.
Of course, Hamilton will first have to get pass the detractors who refuse to consider racing as a sporting event. Those doubters should consider the following facts. F1 drivers are amongst the fittest of all sportsmen as their bodies are subjected to the harshest of poundings during a race. The average F1 driver’s superior reflexes, hand-eye coordination and peripheral vision allow him to respond to sudden changes at the rate of 100 milliseconds, as compared to a normal person’s rate of 300 milliseconds. The average temperature of the cockpit of an F1 car is between 50 and 60 degrees Celsius, often resulting in an average weight loss of two to four kilogrammes during a race. Whilst cornering, accelerating and braking during a race, a driver’s head and helmet increases five times, resulting in him experiencing gravitational forces anywhere from two to six g forces, as compared to an astronaut who endures three to four g forces during a launch.
Hamilton’s meteoric rise to the apogee of the Formula One world has no precedent. He is the first and still the only black driver in a very privileged environment, where most of the drivers come from well-heeled backgrounds. Like most of his peers, Hamilton’s early forays in racing were in the go-karting world, where as a ten-year-old, he became the youngest driver to win the British cadet championship. Later that year at the end of season awards ceremony, Hamilton approached Ron Dennis, then head of the dominant McLaren Formula One team for an autograph and informed him that one day he wished to race his cars. Three years later, Dennis signed Hamilton to the McLaren driver development programme, with an option that included a future Formula One seat, which makes Hamilton the youngest driver ever to secure a contract which resulted in a F1 drive.
Hamilton’s F1 resume reads like a fairy tale. In his debut season in 2007, he began his career at the highest level of racing with an unprecedented nine straight podium finishes. In 17 races, he notched four wins and finished runner-up by a single point. The following season Hamilton raced to five victories on his way to his first world title. In 2013, he switched allegiances to the Mercedes AMG Petronas team, where in a rather disappointing season, he managed only one win. Beginning in 2014, Hamilton began an unbelievable reign of dominance of the sport, leaving his counterparts competing for the spoils. Barring the 2016 season when his Mercedes colleague Nico Rosberg beat him for the title, Hamilton has won every championship, an unprecedented six in seven years. Except, for 2017, when he won nine races, Hamilton has won at least ten races every year, including eleven on three occasions.
The long list of records Hamilton currently holds, including the most F1 victories (94) pole positions (97) and podium finishes (163) speaks for itself, but the debate, most noteworthy, amongst the past drivers, is split as to his place in the history of the sport. This should come as no surprise to Hamilton who has been subjected to all manner of abuse throughout his career as he is seen to be encroaching on hallowed turf. At Istanbul Park, Turkey, Hamilton started in sixth position and demonstrated his true mastery of the sport. As other drivers pitted for tyre changes, Hamilton stayed on the track, grasping the lead and cruising to a 30-second victory, for his seventh world title.
Off the track, Hamilton has used his platform on the world stage to speak about social matters, not afraid like some of his counterparts of offending some of his followers or would-be sponsors. He feels strongly about the subjects of the environment and Black Lives Matter and has boldly spoken out on both topics. He understands that his image as a role model for young people is something to be treasured and treated with respect.
The picture of Hamilton at the end of the Turkish Grand Prix, head in his hands, tears streaming down his face will be among the lasting images of the year 2020. Moments later, he acknowledged, “I am almost lost for words. We dreamed of this when I was young. It is so important for kids to see this, and don’t listen to anyone who says you can’t achieve something. Dream the impossible. You have got to chase it and never give up.”
Schumacher’s records were thought to be unsurpassable, but Hamilton has proven otherwise. At the age of 35, who knows how further he can raise the bar. Another two or three years at this level of performance is quite possible. Perhaps, when Hamilton retires from the sport the argument about the greatest Formula One driver of all time will be settled once and for all.
