Teammates of Lewis Hamilton have won races in 13 of the 15 seasons in which the seven-time World Champion has been in F1.
Lewis Hamilton is arguably one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time. He took the sport by storm upon his entry in 2007, when he went toe to toe with the likes of Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen for the Title.
In the end, he lost out on the crown by just 1 point, but he truly announced his entry into F1. The following year, he won the Championship with McLaren, finishing a point ahead of Ferrari’s Felipe Massa.
He remained with the McLaren outfit till 2012, after which he joined the Mercedes F1 team. Many saw this move as a poor decision as the Silver Arrows was supposedly in a poor place when compared to the Surrey based team.
Now, we all know how his move to Brackley turned out. Hamilton won 6 World Championships with the German team, and solidified his status as a legend of the sport. He has the most number of race wins, pole positions, fastest laps, and is tied with Michael Schumacher as the driver with the most World Titles (seven).
On top of that, the 37-year old has won an F1 race in every single season he’s competed in since his debut in 2007. It shows remarkable consistency and exceptional talent. However, what often goes under the radar is the fact that Hamilton’s teammates have also won races in almost every single season he’s taken part in.
Did Lewis Hamilton always have the ‘best car’ in F1?
Hamilton’s ability behind the wheel can never be doubted. He has consistently outperformed his teammates for the majority of his career. However, it can be questioned whether he’s been in a winning car throughout his time in the sport.
All of his teammates have won races in the very same car as him, barring Heikki Kovalainen and Valtteri Bottas in 2009 and 2018 respectively. Hamilton’s streak of winning in every single campaign is extraordinary. But, when we see that his teammates have done the same in almost every season, some questions may creep in.
Here’s how Lewis Hamilton’s teammates’ have performed over the last 15 years in Formula 1.
Did Hamilton really just have the best car on grid? pic.twitter.com/zt422o8iMw— sominslc (@sominslc1) January 26, 2022
His latter years at McLaren on the other hand weren’t the smoothest. It was an era that was being dominated by Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull, and Hamilton could not manage to snatch the crown from them.
A part of his greatness is measured when people say that he did win races during the tough times. However, it’s not often brought to light that his teammates did the very same thing in the very same car.
Still, the fact that Lewis Hamilton outperformed them, even under those circumstances, is a testament to just how legendary he is.
