Lewis Hamilton has been on top of the toughest and the fastest motorsport in the world for sixteen long years. Over the last decade and a half, the British racer emerged as one of the greatest drivers in F1 history, equalizing Micheal Schumacher’s record of seven world championships. However, the 37-year-old was not as respected as today when he broke into Formula One and drover for McLaren for the first time in 2007. He joined two-time championship-winning driver Fernando Alonso on the racing team.
The Briton was not expected to be a frontrunner during his first season. However, Lewis Hamilton shocked everyone by emerging as a world title contender in his first spree as an F1 driver. He teamed up with Alonso, the defending champion back then. And nobody expected Lewis to compete with his own teammate for the title.
But, Hamilton was up for the challenge as he won a title in his four years before being promoted to Formula One. Lewis might have felt some immense pressure when he joined McLaren. He was racing alongside Alonso, who had won two championships in 2005 and 2006. However, the Briton faced some issues with the racing team’s engineers as they refrained from working on the then rookie’s car.
Why Did The Engineers Fight Not To Work On Lewis’ Car?
Recently, former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley has claimed that the team engineers fought to avoid working on Lewis Hamilton’s car during his rookie season for McLaren. The employees preferred working on the world champions Alonso’s car. Priestley mentioned that mechanics and engineers gravely underestimated the newcomer. They actively fought to work for his teammate Alonso in 2007.
The former McLaren mechanics and engineers fought against each other to work in Fernando’s garage. Marc added, “People didn’t want to work in Lewis Hamilton’s car because they didn’t expect so much from him.”
While the McLaren personnel was rooting against Hamilton, the Briton finished second at the end of the championship in 2007. Moreover, he gathered more points during his debut season against Fernando Alonso, who finished third that year. Since then, Hamilton has not looked back and became one of the most successful drivers across the F1 circuit.