Lewis Hamilton

A seven-time world champion. The most wins, pole positions, and podium finishes in Formula One history. An environmentalist, social activist, fashion designer, musician, and a force for global change in combating racism and pushing for increased diversity in motorsport.

There are many sides to Sir Lewis Hamilton. Few sportspeople have had the impact that he has had not only in his own sport but beyond, and at 38 he is still hungry to achieve and deliver more.

A sensation in karting, Lewis’ enormous talent was recognised early in his career by Mercedes-Benz who began sponsoring him from a young age. He climbed the karting ladder quickly, joining the McLaren Mercedes Young Driver Programme in 1997 before embarking on single-seaters.

Success followed swiftly with titles in Formula Renault UK, the Formula 3 Euro Series and a dominant rookie campaign in the 2006 GP2 Series securing his promotion to F1 with McLaren Mercedes.

Making his debut at the age of just 22, alongside reigning World Champion Fernando Alonso, Lewis’ maiden F1 season was a remarkable one. He remained in title contention until the very last round and narrowly missed out on the title by just one point. The world championship would become his the very next year though, sealing the crown in one of the most dramatic title deciders in the sport’s history.

After six seasons with McLaren, he sought a new challenge for 2013 and joined the works Mercedes team. A single victory that year said little of what was to come. In 2014, with the dawn of a new era in the sport owing to a major Power Unit change, a second Drivers’ Championship followed. 10 wins and 17 total podiums in 2015 netted a third world title before Lewis narrowly missed out on retaining his crown in 2016.

Bouncing back in 2017, Lewis secured the title with two rounds to spare and began a run of four consecutive Drivers’ Championships. En route, he shattered many of the most prestigious records in the sport including surpassing Michael Schumacher’s tally of F1 race wins in 2020. At the Turkish Grand Prix that same year, he matched Michael’s record of world titles with his seventh championship.

An intense 2021 season saw Lewis became the first driver to reach both 100 wins and 100 pole positions in the sport’s history. After a year-long battle, he narrowly lost out to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in controversial circumstances but still helped Mercedes to its eighth consecutive Constructors’ title.

Last year proved less successful on track for the Team with a difficult car to get on top of. However, Lewis is as determined as ever for the season ahead.