Lewis Hamilton, unlike most F1 drivers, comes from a humble background. Therefore, his rise from his early days in motorsport to becoming a seven-time world champion is remarkable.
His father used to have multiple jobs to support his karting career. Apart from poverty, Hamilton was disadvantaged by his opponents since childhood on racial lines.
And it still reflects, as to date, he is the only black driver in the history of the sport. Thus, the Briton race driver overcame several obstacles to be at par with the greatest sportspersons of all time.
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Lewis Hamilton used to wash cars for $12
Hamilton while discussing how he used to keep his first car spotless. He also washed the cars for as many people as possible to make money for himself.
“When I was younger, to make a bit of money, I was cleaning cars,” said Hamilton on Youtuber Supercar Blondie’s video. “Like as many people’s cars on streets, and I would do really great job.” Hamilton later was asked how much he used to charge people for cleaning cars.
#OnThisDay in 1997: Rising star Lewis Hamilton (then aged 12) spoke about his ambition to become an F1 racing driver, on the BBC Two show Black Britain. pic.twitter.com/dyhU5ugiVE
— BBC Archive (@BBCArchive) November 19, 2022
The Briton revealed that at first, he only used to take charge of $12, but after gaining some experience, he reached $59.
Million dollar idea Mercedes star rejected
After listening to Hamilton’s car wash video, Supercar Blondie suggested that he open a business to wash cars and charge $1 million to wash a car.
Certainly not a bad idea, considering how many wealthy people would fancy the F1 star to wash their cars. However, Hamilton laughed off the idea and stated that he wasn’t interested as he wouldn’t like grease on his elbows now.
Though, Hamilton admits he used to enjoy those days when he was away from fame and could do certain things. But now, he has come a long way and become one of the most inspiring figures in sports.
The Briton race driver pushes for more diversity in F1 and has even opened the Hamilton commission, which aims to promote the upliftment of the disadvantaged population in motorsports.
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