Lewis Hamilton’s mega season against Max Verstappen in 2021 is remembered by all. The duo provided fans with enormous performances and is easily dubbed as one of the best seasons in F1 by far. On the other hand, Hamilton going against his former teammate Nico Rosberg in 2016, where the German managed to defeat the former, has also been a fine season to a great extent. Despite having great rivalries against Verstappen and Rosberg in both these seasons, Hamilton snubbed both of them to pick Sebastian Vettel as his favorite rival to compete against.
When asked about his favorite rival, Hamilton said, as per Deni on X, “Sebastian Vettel. I’ve always enjoyed racing against him; every race has always been a gritty challenge.” Notably, all three drivers were able to defeat the British driver in a season, but statistically, Vettel has given Hamilton more competition than any other driver could ever.
Hamilton and Vettel have been championship winners in F1 from 2010 to 2020, except in 2016. The duo was on top of the chart and competed against each other on more than one occasion, as they went head to head in the last few years in 2017, 2018, and 2019.
Notably, the German former driver was the only formidable rival against Hamilton in these three years, and their rivalry was a treat to watch. While Hamilton ended up winning all three championships in the 2017, 2018, and 2019 seasons, Vettel, with his Ferrari, finished these seasons in P2, P2, and P5 positions, respectively.
Apart from this, Vettel also had an era where he was indomitable. He was untouchable from 2010 to 2013 and gave Hamilton a run for his life in these seasons. On the other hand, Hamilton also dominated the grid with seven F1 world titles. Therefore, both these drivers knew how to remain on top and dominate, and their rivalry often brought out heated actions between them. A few such examples are the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the 2019 Canadian Grand Prix.
What happened between Hamilton and Vettel in these two races?
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel started these two races as the race-winning candidates. Therefore, neither of these drivers was ready to leave an inch for each other. In Baku in 2017, Hamilton was ahead of Vettel during a race restart. Soon before they hit the speed, Hamilton and Vettel’s car hit each other, with the German’s car suffering damage in the front wing.
Following this, Vettel came up alongside Hamilton to shove the latter’s car. This resulted in the FIA handing Vettel a ten-second penalty for dangerous driving. This erupted a war of words between them and became the peak point of their rivalry. However, this incident was the beginning of their friendship.
Apart from this, the four-time world champion’s board swap with Lewis Hamilton is also remembered by all. Vettel removed the #1 board from the front of Hamilton’s car to place it in front of his car after losing the race win in Canada in 2019. Nevertheless, Vettel did it out of fun, and it was evident that the duo liked each other’s company and rivalry very much.
Seb, it’s been an honour to call you a competitor and an ever greater honour to call you my friend. Leaving this sport better than you found it is always the goal. I have no doubt that whatever comes next for you will be exciting, meaningful, and rewarding. Love you, man. pic.twitter.com/eHVmOpov2m
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) July 28, 2022
As Vettel retired at the end of the 2022 F1 season, Hamilton paid tribute to a friend and rival in the process. The German former driver has been a figure to support the Briton in all things away from F1, from raising his voice against environmental hazards to taking a knee against racial discrimination in 2020.
Lewis Hamilton posted an emotional post on social media and bid goodbye to his friend Sebastian Vettel. Along with this, he also planned a goodbye dinner with the entire grid for Vettel as the four-time world champion hung up his overalls in 2022.
