THE GOAT OF F1 (PART 2)

- April 05, 2023

Hello Turbonerdz, I hope you guys are doing great and this episode meets you well. Just a recap reminding us that for the coming weeks, we would be looking into Formula One which is a very wide topic to consider, but there are a few important events and people who make up the sport and these would serve as our basis of discussion. Last week we kicked it off with Sir Lewis Hamilton, the Ewu of Formula One and we will conclude that topic of discussion today.

Sir Hamilton

To become a Formular One driver, there are stages you must go through. The first stage is karting and we covered this in the last episode. Hamilton started carting at the age of six and two years in, he began to bag trophies. After karting, a driver then moves on to Formula 3, before Formula 2 and then finally joining the big dogs at Formula 1.

For Hamilton, he began his racing career in the 2001 British Formula Renault Winter Series, finishing fifth in the standings. One might say fifth position is not so amazing but do not forget that Hamilton was a freshman and he was just sixteen years old at the time. In 2002, Hamilton participated in the Formula Renault UK campaign with Manor Motorsport in which he finished third overall. Man just kept bagging the trophies!

Hamilton the Tensioner

After performing well in Formula Renault, Hamilton moved on to Formula 3 but his debut was not as fabulous. In his first race he was forced out with a puncture to one of his tires and in the second he crashed out and was taken to the hospital after a collision with his teammate. These hurdles did not stop Hamilton though, because he worked on his shortcomings and got a hang of it, clinching some wins as he drove for McLaren, the team he wanted to drive for as a kid.

There is a lot of back story to Hamilton's time in Formula 3 but we cannot go in-depth. Hamilton eventually moved on to Formula 2 and guess what? Hamilton won the Formula 2 championship at his first attempt! It's like a kid getting a double promotion and on getting to his new class, beating all the older and more experienced kids. Hamilton did not stop there as he would win even at the famous Nürburgring, despite a penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

Agba Driver!

After proving himself worthy, Hamilton then moved to the big leagues a.k.a Formula One still driving for McLaren. It was not until 2013 that he left McLaren for Mercedes Benz which was a shock to many as Mercedes was still struggling back then and people thought he had made a terrible decision. As fate would have it, 10 years down the line, we can see that moving to Mercedes was a great decision.

In the 2014 season, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) made some changes to F1 regulations, mandating the use of turbo-hybrid engines and this contributed to the start of a highly successful era for Hamilton in Mercedes. Do you now see why I always tell you Turbonerdz to Turbo your engines? (wink). To cut the long story short, Hamilton has dominated Formular One ever since. Between 2017 - 2022, Hamilton won the World Championship back to back! He currently holds 7 World Championship titles, tying the record of Michael Schumacher and would have clinched his 8th World Championship last year, but he was cheated out of it and that is a story for another day.

The Coolest to Ever Do It

I think we have covered enough of Hamilton's career, even though we barely scratched the surface. I personally love Hamilton and he is definitely one of my idols. One reason I love him so much is because he is so focused to win on race day and the very next day, he could be modelling for a company. His car and jewelry collection is also amazing.

He is the perfect definition of beauty and brains. His ability to dominate a white man's game while being one of the coolest black men ever is amazing. Lest I forget, Lewis Hamilton was Knighted in 2021 and that's the reason why he has a Sir attached his name, now that is royalty. In my opinion, movies and documentaries should be made about the life of this man because against all odds, he has continued to excel!