Analysis | Why Formula 1 cannot go without Lewis Hamilton
Column
- Ludo van Denderen
Lewis Hamilton has signed a new contract and will remain in Formula 1 until at least the conclusion of the 2025 season. Good news for the Brit, his Mercedes team and most importantly, Formula 1 as a whole. Right now, the sport will simply not be the same without the most successful competitor ever.
The 2021 season has gone down in the books as one of the best in Formula 1 history. In the current period when one man - in this case, Max Verstappen - dominates the premier class in motorsport, neutral fans no doubt think back nostalgically to that one year when that same Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton fought each other hard. It was a clash of styles, of generations and, above all, personalities.
Icon with Hollywood allure
On the one hand, there was the fearless youngster Verstappen, afraid of nobody, who knocked down all the barriers in Formula 1. Then there was the seven-time World Champion, for years the face of the sport, an icon with Hollywood allure. They delivered drama on and off the track, resulting in a season finale that was as spectacular as it was controversial.
Verstappen and Hamilton; you either love them, or you don't. There is hardly a middle ground. Verstappen and Hamilton are, in their own way, remarkable figures in a branch of sport that has produced less-known drivers. Even at the moment - while Hamilton is only sporadically playing a significant role at the front of the field with his Mercedes - the Brit elicits both admiration and irritation from F1 fans. Just as Verstappen does too.
Hamilton opens doors
The Formula 1 organisation will undoubtedly be rubbing their hands with glee if Hamilton stays with Mercedes longer and can be an important flag-bearer for the sport. No F1 driver is as famous as Lewis Hamilton. Where Hamilton appears, doors open wide, thus also for Formula 1. When Hamilton speaks, for instance, about diversity and equality, people listen.
Moreover, with the right material, he guarantees sporting excellence, someone spectators come to the track for. Let's face it: surely motorsport fans would rather see a battle between Hamilton and Verstappen than Russell against Verstappen or Leclerc against Verstappen? Russell and Leclerc are good drivers. They are not as good as Verstappen and Hamilton. Just the idea that Hamilton could, at some point, fight Verstappen - the man trying to surpass him in terms of sporting achievements - again makes the mouth water.
Hamilton desperately wants that eighth world title. For that, he needs Formula 1. Just as Formula 1 needs Lewis Hamilton.