Lewis Hamilton or George Russell winning Italian GP could mark return of ‘God Save the King’ anthem in F1 after Queen Elizabeth II’s passing

Lewis Hamilton or George Russell winning the Italian GP in Monza could see the ‘God Save the King’ anthem return to Formula 1. 

The entire world mourned the loss of Queen Elizabeth II earlier this week. She was Britain’s longest-serving monarch, ruling for 70 years until her death at the age of 96. F1 teams and drivers too offered their condolences after the Queen passed away.

Britain’s national anthem, ‘God Save the Queen’ became one of the most recognizable in the world. A huge reason behind this was the country’s success in various sporting events since the Queen’s coronation in 1952. In F1, particularly, fans of previous and current generations alike are used to hearing this anthem play when a driver steps on the top of a podium after a race.

In recent years, Lewis Hamilton has kept the British flag flying high in F1. The 37-year-old has won 103 races in F1 career which means that since 2007 we have heard him sing ‘God Save the Queen’ 103 times on the podium.

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Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will sing ‘God Save the King’

Drivers like Jackie Stewart, Nigel Mansell and Damon Hill are also F1 legends who represented Great Britain in the sport and won multiple races. The Queen’s passing, however, can lead to a big change in British drivers winning a race in F1.

Great Britain no longer has a Queen ruling. Prince Charles is next in line for succession, which means he will be crowned as King in the coming days. This means that, for the first time since 1952, the British people will have to gear up for a change in their national anthem. It will no longer be ‘God Save the Queen’. Instead, the people will now be singing, ‘God Save the King’.

The Italian GP takes place this weekend in Monza. Currently, there are three British drivers on the grid in Hamilton, George Russell and Lando Norris. If either of them win the race, fans will hear ‘God Save the King’ play during the podium celebrations.

Only twice before in F1 history has this rendition of the British National Anthem been played. This was back in 1950 and 1951 (the Queen was crowned in 1952), at the British GP in Silverstone.

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