Lewis Hamilton made his debut in Formula 1 in 2007 with the Mclaren F1 team. He teamed up with newly-crowned 2-time world champion Fernando Alonso and challenged him for the title that year.
Hamilton had reportedly signed a 3-year deal on a $1 Million a year contract, which was said to be $14 Million less than what Alonso was being paid. Following this, Lewis‘ father, Anthony, who was also his manager at the time demanded McLaren boss Ron Dennis give his son a pay raise of $8 Million.
But Dennis laughed it away. Business F1 reveals that the then McLaren boss was sure that he held all the cards and was in complete control of Lewis’ career. Furious with his response the Hamiltons set in motion a masterplan that not only ensured his hike but also saw Alonso’s resignation.
Lewis Hamilton manipulated Dennis’ will and made Alonso a collateral damage
After getting rejected for the pay raise, Anthony was certain that he needs to change the terms of the relationship between Dennis and Lewis. Business F1 reveals that the Hamiltons chose the unconventional option to get what they wanted.
The masterplan was enacted at the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix, the weekend that McLaren and Mercedes press officers were absent. The Hamilton duo saw it as a perfect opportunity to show Dennis who really had the power in the relationship.
The plan was simple – they had to disrupt the team’s strategy, destabilize Alonso and get Lewis a new contract. To achieve that, they enacted the first phase of the plan during the qualifying session of the Hungarian GP.
The first phase of the plan
In 2007, there were a lot of fuel-related antics that needed to be done to stay at the top of the grid. During the qualifying, Hamilton and Alonso were taking turns to get the fuel advantage. Despite an already agreed-upon strategy for the weekend, Hamilton deliberately intervened which provoked Dennis into taking an action.
The actions that Dennis took led Alonso into taking the pole position while appearing to block Hamilton. This incident gave Hamilton the chance to retaliate and he went ballistic on the team radio. Business F1 quoted the conversation between Hamilton and Dennis on team radio: “Don’t ever f*cking do that to me again”, to which Dennis replied, “Don’t you ever f*cking talk to me like that”. Hamilton angrily said, “Go f*cking swivel.”
The second phase of the plan
Post-qualifying, McLaren would usually hold a press conference with Dennis and the two drivers to answer the question. But that evening, Dennis apparently told Hamilton not to join the press conference and avoid any awkward questions.
While McLaren was involved in the press conference, Anthony went behind Dennis’ back and met the then FIA steward Tony Scott-Andrews. Business F1 claims that Anthony persuaded Andrews to investigate Alonso for blocking Hamilton. Convinced by the evidence provided to him, Andrews agreed to hold a hearing.
Meanwhile, speaking to the media, Dennis downplayed the war of words between him and Hamilton. He described it as two strong characters being firm while Alonso said nothing to contradict him.
In the middle of the conference, Dennis had to leave after Andrews had summoned him for the hearing. The McLaren boss left Alonso alone and as soon as he left, Lewis joined the press conference and blamed everything on Alonso and contradicted everything that Dennis had said.
The third phase of the plan
Following the stewards’ meeting, Alonso was knocked out of the pole position and was handed a five-place grid penalty. Annoyed by the consequences, Alonso, who was also unaware of Anthony Hamilton’s doings, blamed Dennis for everything.
The Spaniard went to Bernie Ecclestone’s motorhome and asked him to intervene with Flavio Briatore to see if he can go back to Renault in 2008. Ecclestone fixed up a deal for Alonso and by the time the dust was settled, the Spaniard was ready to hand over his resignation to the Woking-based team.
Left with no choice, Dennis renegotiated Hamilton’s deal and he agreed upon a five-year deal worth $12 Million a year. The Hamiltons had succeeded in breaking the bond between Ron Dennis and Lewis Hamilton while also getting the latter rid of his fiercest rival.
