Hamilton Explains Why He Didn't Enjoy His First Two Titles

Saturday, 07 September 2024 at 22:00

Mercedes's F1 driver, Lewis Hamilton, discussed how winning his first three titles felt and explained why he didn't enjoy the first two.

As it stands, Lewis Hamilton is statistically the most successful driver in Formula One history, with 201 podiums, 105 wins, and seven World Championship titles to his name.

Having won so many Championships, one might expect it would be tough for the 39-year-old to recall how it felt to win the first or the second, but he does remember them very clearly.

What is more surprising is that when Hamilton looks back, he says he did not enjoy winning these first two titles. He said on the Performance People podcast:

"The first one I didn't enjoy because it was just – I don't know – it just wasn't a great time for me."

"The second [title in 2014] was just like: 'I made the right decision and I proved everyone wrong. Great, so I can sleep.'"

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The Briton won his first title with McLaren in 2008 and then the second one with Mercedes in 2014. In the six years following 2014, he added five more titles to his collection.

Hamilton won every year between 2014 and 2021, except in 2016 when Nico Rosberg (his teammate) managed to beat him. The 39-year-old continued:

"I was competing with my team-mate. He was tough to beat, but in general you would always prefer that you're competing with several teams. That's what the sport should be doing."

"More often than not, that's not the case, but I'm still grateful for it obviously. I think it was until 2015 that I was really, really able to properly enjoy it."

"But then the next one felt like: 'OK, we're here to stay, this is really [going to mean] something' – because [three titles is] also what Ayrton [Senna] won."

In 2021, Hamilton came super close to breaking Michael Schumacher's record by scoring the eighth title, but as you might very well know, Max Verstappen snatched it on the final lap of the season's last race.

The seven-time World Champion recently opened up about his emotional reaction to being replaced by Kimi Antonelli. It is now clear that he won't win the eighth title with Mercedes as he leaves the team at the end of this season. However, he can still do it with Ferrari, his next destination.