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Lewis Hamilton did not pay up ‘promised’ $3 million to father Anthony during ugly split

Somin Bhattacharjee
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Lewis Hamilton did not pay up ‘promised’ $3 million to father Anthony during ugly split

Seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton broke a promise when he refused to pay $3 million to his father Anthony. 

Hamilton has often stated how important a role his father played in kickstarting his racing career. Unlike most F1 stars, he did not come from a wealthy family, but his father worked tirelessly in order to help his son achieve his dream.

Anthony Hamilton made a lot of sacrifices, and his son is eternally grateful for that. Behind all the love and admiration, however, there was a time when money came in between their relationship.

Anthony was his son’s manager during his initial F1 days, but he took any money. He also never accepted any gifts from Lewis Hamilton. “Some of us do it so that our kids have better opportunities than we had,” he said.

“For the love of the child,” the 66-year-old continued. “When he won his title in 2008 he thanked me and that was all I needed for my 18 years of toil and graft.”

Also read: “Michael Schumacher was the best candidate of all”: When 7-time World Champion refused to join Ferrari as executive

Lewis Hamilton promised to pay his father $3 million dollars after splitting up

Hamilton had his own father as manager until 2010, after they decided to split up. It was then that the then McLaren driver offered his father a sum between $3-4 million. The reason behind this wasn’t clear, but it may have been a sign of guilt from Hamilton’s side.

“Maybe he was feeling guilty,” Anthony Hamilton said. “I never asked for the gift but he did propose to give me one.”

In spite of making that commitment, according to Eurosport, Hamilton did not pay his father the money. The seven-time World Champion withdrew the offer, but Anthony did not go ‘money grabbing’ from his son.

“It is not my place to go money-grabbing to my son,” he continued. “It’s not my business. He makes his own decisions.”

He also stated that he never wanted to rely on Hamilton’s F1 career for himself. Anthony wanted to make his own company successful before getting his son into Formula 1.

“It was important for me to be successful with my own company before Lewis got into Formula One because I never wanted to rely on him for money,” the 37-year-old’s father said.

Also read: When Michael Schumacher almost signed for McLaren starting a dream pairing alongside Mika Hakkinen in 1999

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Somin Bhattacharjee

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Formula 1 Editor Somin Bhattacharjee fell for the sport as well as Fernando Alonso on the same day — during the Spaniard’s thrilling victory at the German GP in 2010. Over the years, the passion magnified manyfold, and metamorphosed into a writing career in 2021. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. He has penned over 2,700 articles for TheSportsRush, presenting a diverse range — news reports, opinions, and exclusives. A true Tiffosi, Somin never gives up on a chance to defend the Ferrari boys as a fan. As a sports writer though, he remains objective to the core and relishes opportunities to follow and engage in dissecting the action during races. That’s where the real thrill lies for him. Beyond the racetrack, Somin plays different sports including soccer. He enjoys exploring other sporting events and proudly supports Spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

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