Formula 1 Carreer
McLaren (2007–2012)
Hamilton's success in the GP2 championship coincided with a vacancy at McLaren-Mercedes following the departure of Juan Pablo Montoya to NASCAR and Kimi Räikkönen to Ferrari. Hamilton was given nearly 5,000 miles (8,000 km) of testing in the McLaren MP4-21 to acclimatise himself to Formula One, alongside Pedro de la Rosa and Gary Paffett. Ultimately, Hamilton was confirmed as the team's second driver; the announcement was not made public for nearly two months, reportedly to avoid being overlooked by Michael Schumacher's retirement announcement.
2007–2008: Record-breaking debut seasons
Hamilton's maiden season in Formula One saw him partner two-time defending World Drivers' Champion Fernando Alonso at McLaren. At the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton became the first—and, as of 2025, only—black driver to race in the series. After finishing third on debut, Hamilton went on to set several records, including the most consecutive podium finishes from debut (9), the most wins in a debut season (4, shared with Jacques Villeneuve) and the most points in a debut season (109). Acquiring the championship lead as early as in the fourth round of the season, Hamilton became the youngest driver to lead the World Drivers' Championship. After a series of misfortunes in the latter half of the season, including strategic missteps by McLaren in the closing rounds and a retirement at the Chinese Grand Prix, Hamilton's 12-point advantage in the standings evanesced. He finished runner-up in the championship to Räikkönen by one point, classified ahead of teammate Alonso whilst finishing level on points.[note 2] Throughout the season, Hamilton and Alonso were involved in several incidents, which resulted in inter-team tensions, culminating in Alonso and McLaren terminating their contract by mutual consent. Hamilton signed a £50 million contract to stay with the team until the end of 2012.
Partnering Heikki Kovalainen for 2008, Hamilton's winning form continued as he amassed five race victories and 10 podium finishes. Ferrari drivers, along with BMW's Robert Kubica, emerged as his closest rivals, as they engaged in a close battle for the title with Hamilton during the first half of the season. At the rain-affected British Grand Prix, he won by over a minute from second-placed Nick Heidfeld, which was widely acclaimed as one of the greatest wet-weather performances in Formula One history. As the season progressed towards the closing rounds, the championship became a clear two-way fight between Hamilton and Ferrari's Felipe Massa. Hamilton won his maiden title at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix, overtaking Timo Glock for fifth-place at the final corners of the last lap to become the then-youngest World Drivers' Champion, and deny race-winner Massa the title by one point. Hamilton also became the first British driver to win the World Drivers' Championship since Damon Hill in 1996.
2009–2012: Unsuccessful title bids and departure from McLaren
During his veering final years with McLaren—a period largely dominated by Red Bull—Hamilton continued to score podium finishes and race victories, and challenged for titles. Major technical regulation changes in 2009 led to a challenging start for McLaren. Often qualifying outside of the top ten, and struggling to finish consistently on points, Hamilton's chances of defending his title became unfeasible. Major upgrades at the German Grand Prix saw a dramatic improvement in performance of the MP4-24 car. From that point onward, Hamilton advanced from eleventh to fifth in the standings and outscored the rest of the field, securing two race victories and three additional podium finishes across the remaining nine rounds.
In 2010, Hamilton was partnered by reigning World Drivers' Champion Jenson Button. Whilst McLaren struggled to match the outright pace of Red Bull and Ferrari, Hamilton engaged in a four-way title battle with Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber throughout the season. At the Canadian Grand Prix, he secured McLaren's only pole position of the season, and took the championship lead after winning the race. Hamilton's latter half of the season unravelled with a number of misfortunes, including race-ending collisions and mechanical failures, culminated in him losing vital points to his rivals, and ultimately, the championship lead.[82] He entered the final round of the season with an outside chance of winning the title, but finished fourth in the standings as Vettel won his maiden title.
2011 was a challenging year for Hamilton, marking the first season he had been out-scored by a teammate, as Button finished runner-up to Vettel. Setbacks in his private life, as well as on-track collisions culminating in multiple run-ins with the stewards, contributed to his inconsistent performances throughout the season. Hamilton finished fifth in the standings with three race wins; he secured the only non-Red Bull pole position of the season at the Korean Grand Prix, and vowed he would return to form.
In 2012, McLaren emerged as contenders for the title, with Hamilton remaining in title contention during the first half of the season. Akin to the 2010 season, he endured a challenging latter half of the season, with inconsistent results and a series of mechanical failures. Across those ten races, Hamilton encountered five retirements, three whilst leading. Ultimately, Hamilton finished fourth in the standings, achieving four race wins and a season-highest seven pole positions. Motorsport.com analysis found that Hamilton had lost an estimated 110 points due to race retirements and other misfortunes. Prior to the end of the year, having denied multiple renegotiations with McLaren, Hamilton announced—to widespread surprise—that he would be joining Mercedes for the 2013 season. Hamilton expressed his gratitude, stating he was "forever grateful" for the opportunities and support he had received throughout his career, ending a 15-year association with McLaren.
Mercedes (2013–2024)
2013–2016: Teammates with Rosberg
Upon signing with Mercedes in 2013, with a deal reportedly worth more than £60 million to replace the retiring Schumacher, Hamilton was reunited with his childhood karting teammate, Nico Rosberg. The move was met with surprise by pundits and the public, with some describing the move to Mercedes—a team with no recent history of success—as a gamble. In his first season with the Brackley-based team—amidst Mercedes W04's tyre management struggles—Hamilton finished fourth in the standings, securing five podium finishes and pole positions, with only one converted into a race victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Whilst Pirelli's switch in tyre construction contributed to his victory in Hungary, Hamilton and Mercedes endured a difficult latter half of the season, as he only managed to achieve one podium finish for the rest of the year.
Changes to engine regulations for the 2014 season, which mandated the use of turbo-hybrid engines, contributed to the start of a highly successful era for Hamilton. Mercedes won 16 of the 19 races held that season; Hamilton secured a career-best 11 victories as he prevailed in a season-long duel for the title against teammate Rosberg. After securing a streak of wins and acquiring the championship lead, Hamilton endured a number of misfortunes mid-season, including mechanical failures and a collision with Rosberg which culminated in a retirement from the Belgian Grand Prix, saw him trailing Rosberg by 29 points in the standings. Following a run of five consecutive race victories towards the end of the season, Hamilton clinched his second World Drivers' Championship at the final round in Abu Dhabi, and declared it was "the greatest day of [his] life" over team radio.
Opting to continue racing with his old karting number 44, Hamilton fended off Rosberg's challenge for the title for a second year running in 2015, winning 10 races from a then-joint record 17 podium finishes, scoring 11 pole positions in the first 12 races, and leading the championship throughout the season, he achieved his first back-to-back championships. His rivalry with Rosberg intensified, climaxing in a heated battle at the United States Grand Prix, where Hamilton clinched the title with three races to spare. Hamilton extended his contract with Mercedes for three additional years in a deal reportedly worth more than £100 million; the deal allowed Hamilton to retain his own image rights and keep his championship-winning cars and trophies.
After another season-long duel for the title in 2016, Hamilton finished runner-up in the championship to Rosberg by five points. He endured a challenging start to the season, as a succession of poor race-starts and mechanical failures culminated in him being marginally behind Rosberg in the standings. Mercedes' policy of letting the pair fight freely led to several acrimonious exchanges on-track,culminating in collisions at the Spanish and Austrian Grands Prix. Hamilton won six of seven races mid-season, including the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he overtook his teammate to the championship lead for the first time of the season. After a crucial engine blowout in Malaysia, Hamilton secured a hat-trick of wins—including his 50th race victory in United States, and 100th podium finish in Japan—to enter the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, 12 points adrift of Rosberg. In Abu Dhabi, Hamilton defied team orders—deliberately slowing Rosberg into the chasing pack at the end of the race, in an unsuccessful bid to encourage other drivers to overtake his teammate. Rosberg took the title before announcing his shock retirement from the sport, immediately after beating his rival. Finishing runner-up in the championship, Hamilton broke the record for most wins in a season without becoming the champion, securing a season-highest 10 race victories, in addition to the record for most career points of all-time.
2017–2020: Four titles in a row
Following Rosberg's retirement, Hamilton was partnered by Valtteri Bottas in 2017. With Ferrari emerging as the team to beat after the major overhaul in aerodynamics regulations, Vettel became Hamilton's closest rival, as he led the standings throughout the first half of the season ahead of Hamilton. Following the summer break, benefitting from Vettel's misfortunes and Mercedes' resurgence, Hamilton dominated the subsequent races, winning five in six, including the Italian Grand Prix where he broke the record for all-time most pole positions, and overtook Vettel for the championship lead for the first time of the season. Registering a total of 11 pole positions, nine race victories, and equalling the record for most grand slams in a season (3), Hamilton won his fourth World Drivers' title at the Mexican Grand Prix with two races to spare.
In 2018, whilst Ferrari once again held the upper hand, Hamilton and Vettel engaged in a much closer battle for their fifth title—widely billed as the "Fight for Five"—they exchanged the championship lead several times until the half-way point of the season. Beginning from the German Grand Prix—where Vettel made an error while leading and retired, and Hamilton won starting from 14th on the grid—Vettel's season unravelled with a number of driver errors in the following races. Meanwhile, Hamilton repeated his run of consecutive wins to clinch his fifth title at the Mexican Grand Prix for a second year running. Securing a total of 11 pole positions and race victories from 17 podium finishes, he set a new record for most points scored in a season (408). During the season, Hamilton signed a two-year contract extension with Mercedes, reported to be worth up to £40 million per year, making him the best-paid Formula One driver in history.
Hamilton led the championship standings for the majority of 2019, whilst benefitting from Mercedes' dominant performances during the first half of the season, he fended off title challenges from teammate Bottas, and remained unchallenged amidst Ferrari's sturdy performances following the summer break. Hamilton clinched his sixth title at the United States Grand Prix with two races remaining. After scoring his sixth career grand slam at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the season finale, Hamilton ended the season with 11 race wins in 17 podiums (matching the all-time record for a fourth time), and broke his own record for most points by scoring a total of 413 points, 87 points clear of second-placed Bottas.
Hamilton dominated the 2020 season to win his seventh Drivers' title, equalling the record for most titles set by Schumacher, in a season heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the shortened seventeen-race season, Hamilton secured 10 pole positions and 11 race victories (equalling his previous personal best for the fifth time, in fewer races) including one from the Portuguese Grand Prix, where he achieved his 92nd career win and broke the record for all-time most wins.[120] Hamilton missed the Sakhir Grand Prix after contracting COVID-19, his first race absence since his debut in 2007. Providing one of his greatest performances, Hamilton clinched the title at the rain-affected Turkish Grand Prix with three rounds to spare, and ended the season 124 points ahead of second-placed Bottas.
2021: Title battle vs. Verstappen
Regulation changes for the 2021 season saw Red Bull make performance gains on Mercedes, winning five consecutive races and acquiring the championship lead, Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Hamilton emerged as title favourites early on in the season. Amidst their intense battle for the title, the pair engaged in several on-track battles—culminating in collisions in Britain, Italy and Saudi Arabia—and finished 1–2 at 14 of 22 Grands Prix. Hamilton achieved his 100th pole position and race win at the Spanish and Russian Grands Prix, respectively, becoming the first driver to achieve either feat. Securing a hat-trick of wins in the penultimate rounds, including a recovery drive at the São Paulo Grand Prix—which was acclaimed as one of his greatest performances—Hamilton eliminated a 19-point deficit to Verstappen to enter the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix level on points. In Abu Dhabi, having led the majority of the race, Hamilton was denied the championship by a last-lap overtake from Verstappen following a late safety car. During the year, Hamilton extended his £40 million per year contact with Mercedes for two additional years.
The season finale was marred by controversy over race director Michael Masi's decision to instruct the lapped cars separating Verstappen and Hamilton to un-lap themselves under the safety car, which closed the gap between the pair and allowed Verstappen, who opted to pit for soft tyres, to enter the final lap immediately behind Hamilton, who remained on worn hard tyres. Four days after the race, the FIA announced that it would conduct an internal investigation into the incident. Masi was subsequently removed from his role as race director, with the FIA World Motor Sport Council report finding that "human error" resulted in the failure to follow Formula One Sporting Regulations concerning the withdrawal of the safety car, adding that the final standings are "valid, final and cannot now be changed". Notwithstanding the controversy in Abu Dhabi, BBC Sport's Andrew Benson described the season as "one of the most intense, hard-fought battles in sporting history", with Hamilton and Verstappen having "been head and shoulders—and a lot more—clear of every other driver on the grid".
2022–2024: Mercedes' struggles and departure
Partnered by George Russell in place of the departing Bottas, the 2022 season marked the first time in Hamilton's Formula One career that he did not secure a race win or a pole position. Significant changes in technical regulations saw Hamilton and Mercedes endure a challenging campaign, as the innovative and radically different W13 car suffered with porpoising throughout the season, leading him to deem it "undrivable" and causing him to sustain a back injury at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He frequently experimented with car setups to aid the W13's development during the opening stages of the season. Following major mid-season car upgrades, Hamilton achieved several podium finishes. Hamilton set several records across his sixteenth season, including most consecutive seasons with a podium finish, and at least one lap led. The season also marked the first time Hamilton finished behind his teammate in the standings since 2016, finishing sixth, 35 points behind Russell in fourth.
Mercedes once again faced concerns over their car's competitiveness ahead of the 2023 season. Hamilton endured another winless campaign amidst Red Bull dominance, securing several podium finishes throughout and finishing third in the standings. He took his record ninth pole at the Hungarian Grand Prix—his first since 2021—surpassing Senna and Schumacher for the most pole positions at the same Grand Prix. Hamilton signed a two-year contract extension worth over £100 million to remain with Mercedes.
Prior to the start of the 2024 season, Hamilton triggered an exit-clause in his contract, allowing him to leave Mercedes at the end of his campaign, a year before his contract was due to expire. Having been associated with the German marque since the age of 13, Hamilton explained the decision was one of his hardest to make, adding that he needed a new challenge and a different work environment. Mercedes' inconsistent form, coupled with Hamilton's difficulties in adapting to the W15 car—whose characteristics struggled to mesh with his driving style—led to inconsistent qualifying performances, resulting in another challenging season in 2024. Mercedes' short-lived resurgence during mid-season enabled him to deliver his ninth British Grand Prix victory, ending his 31-month winless drought; he broke the record for most wins at the same Grand Prix and became the first driver to win beyond their 300th start. Hamilton secured his 200th podium finish in Hungary, and another victory at the Belgian Grand Prix. After a series of races with fluctuating results, admitting he was "looking forward to the end [of the season]", Hamilton ended the season a career-lowest seventh in the championship—22 points behind teammate Russell—marking the end of his Mercedes career, which was the most successful driver-constructor partnership in Formula One history by several metrics.
Ferrari (2025 onwards)
Following the announcement of his departure from Mercedes, Ferrari announced they had reached a multi-year agreement with Hamilton to join the team in 2025, on a contract reported to be worth more than £40 million per year, replacing Carlos Sainz Jr. to partner Charles Leclerc. Hamilton stated it had been a "childhood dream" to drive for Ferrari. In parallel to his move from McLaren to Mercedes in 2013, it was noted as one of the most unexpected driver transfers in Formula One history, and marked the first time in his career where he did not drive for a Mercedes-powered team. He finished tenth on debut at the Australian Grand Prix after a strategic error. Hamilton then took his maiden sprint victory in China, before being disqualified from sixth in the main race for excessive skid block wear.
