Lewis Hamilton: The Fight to the Top

Formula 1’s only Black driver faces frustration even with a record number of wins

Ferrari driver and Formula 1 (F1) great Michael Schumacher won his 91st Grand Prix on Oct. 1, 2006 at the Shanghai Audi International Circuit. As he rounded turn 16 and blasted past the pit lane wall, he further cemented his right to the title of the greatest F1 driver of all time.

Until Schumacher, the one driver with more first place victories than any other was Alain Prost — who boasted a comparably minuscule 53 titles. For years Schumacher’s record remained unrivaled. But just a year after that famous finish at the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix, a new prodigy by the name of Lewis Hamilton entered the scene. 

Thirteen years later, the rookie who followed in the wake of Schumacher has matched and superseded this titanic record—making him the new king of F1. Today, the question of who reigns supreme is a hotly debated topic.

Hamilton was brought up in a world of racing. Starting with remote control cars, his mind revolved around the possibilities that four wheels and an engine could afford. On a shoestring budget, Hamilton’s father Anthony Hamilton funded his interest and helped him conquer entry-level racing divisions.

In a sporting world dominated by whoever had the heaviest pockets, Hamilton was an outsider. On his climb up the ladder he and his father had to fight harder than the competition. To fund this pursuit, Hamilton’s father took on four jobs and served as a one-man mechanic team during his son’s karting years.

In a 2017 interview with HBO’s Bryant Gumbel, Hamilton reflected on his father’s hard work and dedication.

“He would be in the garage until 3 or 4 am fixing up the go kart and then getting up to go to work, get the train to London at six, coming back late at night and then doing the same thing,” said Hamilton. “He sacrificed every single penny, every second of his day to give me the opportunity to shine.”

But money wasn’t the only hurdle in the way of the Hamilton family as they entered the world of motorsport. Hamilton reflected on this as well in his interview with HBO.

“We were the only black family there,” Hamilton said. “My favorite movie is “Cool Runnings’ and that’s pretty much my life. In ‘Cool Runnings’ the whole paddock all stopped and looked silently and I relate that to my life because when we pulled out the go kart, everyone was looking at us like, ‘What are these guys doing here?’”

Against those odds, Hamilton blazed a startling trail for himself in the world of motorsport, eventually landing himself a seat on Mclaren’s F1 team. Since his rookie year, Hamilton has had a meteoric rise, entering 261 races, winning himself six driver championships and 91 Grands Prix. While Schumacher’s seven championships remains unmatched, it is almost certain that this season will see Hamilton match that high bar as well.

The conversation has been bubbling for a long time about whether Schumacher or Hamilton  will be the greatest of all time? Fundamentally the two are very similar. They started at young ages, exceeded expectations and went on to accomplish now nearly identical levels of success in their shared sport. 

Critically however, Hamilton has used his status as a platform to promote forward-thinking ideology and create change in the sport he loves.

Echoing his experience as a junior racer, Hamilton joined the F1 grid as the first Black man to ever compete in the sport. In the wake of George Floyd’s killing and the movement which followed, Hamilton took to social media to broadcast his remorse for this tragedy and many others like it.

For years Hamilton has been known to broadcast his thoughts and passions to his fans. Be it his ardent veganism or his care for our dwindling ecosystems, he has always pushed for greater awareness and action through any route he can.

Hamilton has often come under fire for his vociferousness, an attack many people from minority communities know too well. Many point to it as a form of braggadocio or self-aggrandizement. In reality, Hamilton’s advocacy is a veracious attempt to catalyze change. Nevertheless, Hamilton is frequently rebuked in more aggressive ways as well. There could be no example more obvious than what took place at this year’s Tuscan Grand Prix.

When Hamilton was out of the car, taking place in typical pre-race ceremonies, he wore a shirt which read “Arrest the cops who killed Breonna Taylor.” The gesture seemed innocent enough. Hamilton had already demonstrated his passion for the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and was an integral part in kickstarting F1’s #WeRaceAsOne initiative—a program started “to fight challenges of COVID-19 and global inequality.”

Nevertheless, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body of global motorsports, waffled a number of times on claims that they would launch an investigation into Hamilton’s apparel. Instead, in the race that followed, the drivers’ handbook was updated to indicate that drivers could not wear any clothes other than necessary race gear.

The hypocrisy could not have been more obvious. The very body which claimed to stand with its drivers through the #WeRaceAsOne initiative silenced the one driver most vocal about the very issues this program claimed to address.

Hamilton refrained from offering any demonstrative rebuke to this choice. Rather, he posted an Instagram story reminding his millions of followers stating that he, “won’t stop, won’t let up.” Despite his reserve, Hamilton’s position could not be more clear.

As of 2020, Hamilton’s contract with Mercedes-AMG Petronas is complete. Many have questioned if the driver would jump ship to try his luck with another team or if he would retire outright. Speaking with ESPN, Hamilton stated that he would like to continue competing for at least another three seasons. He continued that statement citing the inequality of the sport as one of his motivating factors.

“We are in a period of time when there is not another driver from my background coming at the moment," Hamilton said. "I'm conscious of that as well. I don't know, I'm just going to try and ... I want to earn my position here.”

What this means for the sport is immeasurable. We will see the man who has become the greatest F1 driver of all time continue on his journey upward. In that journey we will be a party not only to his athletic accomplishments, but also his philanthropic greatness.