Sir Lewis Hamilton ruled the F1 grid in the previous turbo-hybrid era. Needless to say, he gained immense popularity over the years. The great Briton is definitely the face of the Mercedes F1 team. Many fans and experts claim that he’s also the face of the F1 Motorsport. That’s how popular he has been all these years. He has been an inspiration for so many F1 enthusiasts all over the world.
Against all odds, the Mercedes star fought his way through to the center stage of the sport. However, in the last couple of seasons, Lewis has been winless. On the other hand, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen went on to win three back-to-back titles and 44 races since 2021. Anyhow, Toto Wolff still claims that Lewis Hamilton is the best in F1 at present.
Fans Trolled Mercedes Boss For Claiming Lewis Hamilton Is Still The Greatest Driver On The Grid
Recently, Mercedes’s boss told the media, including RaceFans, that Lewis Hamilton may have a bad weekend. But that does nothing to his reputation of being the greatest driver on the planet. Moreover, Toto Wolff claims he has no doubt that the seven-time champion will fight for another title if Mercedes can give him the right car. Fans took to their social media handles to troll the billionaire Austrian executive. Some said it’s a PR stunt as he knows that’s not true. Since the cost cap era started, the German team has lost its edge in building the fastest car on the grid. Currently, that’s what Red Bull has been doing. Since last year, Red Bull has won 38 Grands Prix. The RB19 car in 2023 has been arguably the fastest F1 car there ever has been.
But Lewis Hamilton is optimistic after seeing the development of their W15 car. He has faith in the Mercedes team. That’s the reason why he signed a two-year extension. Moreover, Hamilton feels the team understands the car much better at present. Hence, he’s hopeful but unwilling to hold his breath. The team is nervous because there is a massive gap to close. Adding to that, Lewis said the team does not want to make too big changes in the wrong direction. Hence, it makes the situation pretty tricky at present. Later, Hamilton praised the development of the Red Bull car since the opening Grand Prix last year.
Why Lewis Is So Great?
Lewis Hamilton started his F1 career in 2007 for the McLaren team. He had an unbelievable rookie season as he finished second. In his second F1 season, Hamilton went on to claim his maiden F1 title. People could tell already back then that many more titles were awaiting the great racer. But Hamilton did not win any more titles with McLaren. Later, he joined Mercedes in 2013 along with Toto Wolff. Thus, the epic collaboration between a team principal and the main driver started in 2013.
Next year, Lewis Hamilton won his second title. In the turbo-hybrid era, which was the period between 2014 and 2021, Mercedes won all the constructor titles. Lewis Hamilton was their biggest weapon. The British driver went on to win six titles in the turbo-hybrid era. He broke several records and established himself as the most decorated driver on the grid. No other F1 driver has yet crossed the 100 Grand Prix win mark. Only Hamilton has been able to do that so far.
