Lewis Hamilton‘s rookie season in Formula 1 took a lot of people by surprise. And his stock was rising meteorically, especially amongst the British TV audience. Consequently, a lot of audacious bets were being placed, including an incredible bet that Hamilton would beat Michael Schumacher‘s record of 91 F1 Grand Prix wins.
Schumacher drove in Formula 1 from 1991 to 2006, and then 2010 to 2012. During his heyday with Benetton and Ferrari, the German won seven world titles and amassed an astonishing 91 race wins. At the time, no one thought that, that record was beatable, and rightly so.
According to Hamilton’s biography authored by Frank Worrall, it was revealed that during the time of the British GP that year, bets were being placed with odds of about 10-1 that the rookie would eventually go on to beat Schumacher’s illustrious win record in the sport. In monetary terms, those odds would pay out a handsome $100 for $10 put in.
Naturally, the people who were brave enough to go ahead with it must’ve been rewarded nicely. Thirteen years later in 2020, Lewis Hamilton, who was racing in Schumacher’s backyard during the Eifel GP, won his 91st race to equal Schumacher’s record. After that, he went on to bag 12 more wins making him the first F1 driver to cross the 100-win threshold.
Lewis Hamilton is now the undisputed GOAT of F1 along side Michael Schumacher
During his time in this sport, Lewis Hamilton has on almost every account, either surpassed or matched the records set by the legendary German driver. With seven-titles a piece, Hamilton holds the edge over Schumacher in terms of overall race wins and number of titles won with a single team. Schumacher won 5-consecutive titles with Ferrari, whilst Hamilton has won 6 titles with Mercedes between 2014 to 2020, a feat no driver has been able to match.
That being said, Hamilton would want to set the record straight and claim the coveted title of the GOAT of Formula 1 all for himself. He only has one thing left to do for that. The Briton has been chasing that elusive eighth world title for a while now, and he would want nothing more than to get his hands on that record before he calls it quits on his time in the sport.
But it’s easier said than done from Hamilton’s perspective. Ever since Max Verstappen burst onto the scene with a dominant Red Bull car, Hamilton’s record of consecutive title wins have come to an end. What’s more, he hasn’t won a race since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP.
Coming into the twilight years of his career, Hamilton has proceeded into an uncharted territory. Never once in his career has he had to face a winless season, let alone two consecutive years since he last won a race.
