Lewis Hamilton burst onto the Formula 1 scene in 2007 with McLaren. It was former McLaren boss Ron Dennis, who showed immense faith in the then 22-year-old. Hamilton indeed repaid the faith from the get-go. Many even consider his 2007 campaign as arguably the greatest rookie season ever.
Today, 17 years after he missed out on winning the championship as a rookie by a single point, Hamilton is statistically the greatest F1 driver ever. The 39-year-old is a seven-time world champion – a feat only matched by Michael Schumacher. So, here’s a rundown of all of Hamilton’s seven championship-winning seasons.
2008 – Lewis Hamilton wins his maiden F1 title
The 2008 season started on a solid note for Lewis Hamilton. He was consistently quick during pre-season testing and was able to outshine reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen. Going into the season opener in Australia, the Briton was on pole and clinched his fifth career win at Albert Park.
Throughout the season, McLaren set the pace while Ferrari gave them tough competition. Hamilton was locked into an intense battle for the title with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa.
The title race went down to the wire at the Brazilian Grand Prix. Although home favorite Massa took the win, it was Hamilton who won the title by a single point after he grabbed the fifth place he needed on the final lap of the race.
2014 – Hamilton wins his first of six titles with Mercedes
After failing to fight for the title with McLaren for four seasons from 2009 to 2012, Lewis Hamilton decided to move to Mercedes. While the Briton could not fight for the championship in 2013, he did make the most of his opportunity a year later.
Hamilton won the 2014 title by 67 points from his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg. He won a total of 11 races en route to his first of six championships with Mercedes, and second overall.
2015 – Hamilton matches his racing hero Ayrton Senna
2015 was another year when Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg fought for the championship. Other than Sebastian Vettel’s three victories that year, the two Mercedes drivers won all the remaining 16 races.
Rosberg won a total of six races, whereas Hamilton won 10. The Briton ended the season with 381 points and beat Rosberg for his third championship by 69 points. In the process, Hamilton also equaled his racing hero, Ayrton Senna, with three titles.
2017 – Vettel emerges as Hamilton’s biggest threat after Rosberg’s retirement
After Nico Rosberg announced his shock retirement from F1 just a few days after winning his first title in 2016, Lewis Hamilton was deemed the favorite to win the championship in 2017. However, it was not as easy as many believed it would be as Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel emerged as the Briton’s biggest threat.
Up until the Monaco Grand Prix, Vettel looked like he was in prime position to win his first title with Ferrari with a 25-point lead over Hamilton. However, as Ferrari’s title charge started to fade, Hamilton picked his tempo up from the Belgian GP onwards.
With five wins in six races, Hamilton entered the Mexican GP weekend with a 66-point lead over Vettel. He then finished P9 at Mexico to win his fourth overall title and third with Mercedes.
2018 – Hamilton beats Vettel once again
After 10 rounds of the 2018 World Championship, Sebastian Vettel sat in the lead of the championship with an eight-point advantage over Lewis Hamilton. In round eleven, Vettel started his home race of Germany on pole.
However, he could not convert his pole position into a win as he ended up colliding with the barriers. With Vettel retiring from the race, it was Hamilton who won it. From that point on, Hamilton established control and went on to win the championship for a second year running.
2019 – Hamilton establishes complete dominance to win his sixth title
Lewis Hamilton pretty much kept everyone in check during the course of the 2019 season. In the end, the Briton won 11 out of the 21 races.
Mercedes were at the peak of their dominance and even Hamilton’s teammate, Valtteri Bottas, was unable to sustain a title charge over the course of the season. In the end, Hamilton beat Bottas by 87 points to win his sixth championship.
2020 – Lewis Hamilton equals Michael Schumacher
2020 was arguably the year in which Lewis Hamilton won the championship in the most dominant fashion ever. He won 11 of the 17 races (fewer races due to the COVID pandemic) that took place that year.
After realizing that he had achieved the unthinkable at the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix, he uttered the famous team radio quote, “That’s for all the kids out there who dream the impossible. You can do it too man! I believe in you guys! Thank you so much everyone for your support.”
Lewis Hamilton is statistically the GOAT of Formula 1
Since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP, Lewis Hamilton has not won a single Grand Prix. Despite not winning a race in over two seasons now, the Briton remains the most successful driver in the history of the sport. Hamilton has won a record 103 Grands Prix and grabbed 104 pole positions. Moreover, he has also clinched 197 podiums.
