Still on the rise: Lewis Hamilton makes F1 history with 92nd win
PARIS - When Michael Schumacher retired from Formula One eight years ago, little did he know he was opening the door for Lewis Hamilton to make history.
The British driver did just that on Sunday, winning the Portuguese Grand Prix with a record 92nd victory of his outstanding career to surpass Schumacher's 91 victories. Runaway leader Hamilton is also set to match Schumacher's record of seven championships this season.
Hamilton replaced Schumacher at Mercedes in 2013 with just one F1 title to his name and 70 wins behind the mark of the great German, which was considered in F1 circles as out of reach.
But with another contract looming at Mercedes, the 35-year-old Hamilton could surpass 100 wins.
"I still feel physically strong, but you still wonder when it's going to capsize and (you) will lose performance," Hamilton said after his victory in Portugal. "But showing today that it is not yet."
His 71 victories with Mercedes come from just 173 races, an impressive 41% win ratio, while his 92 wins in 262 starts (about 35%) put him ahead of Schumacher's 91 at 306 (30%).
Hamilton also has the most pole positions (97 to Schumacher's 68) and podiums (161-155).
But direct comparisons between the two are difficult as they raced at different times, save for an overlapping period of three seasons when Schumacher was driving a non-competitive Mercedes.
Who has the advantage in terms of single lap speed is difficult to judge.
Some of Hamilton's poles have been among the best in F1. In particular, the display at the Singapore GP two years ago and the fascinating control in a rain soaked qualifying for the Styrian GP in July.
However, Hamilton's season best ratio of 11 wins in 19 races falls short of Schumacher's masterful 13 of 18, a staggering 72% win ratio, during his last Ferrari title in 2004. All 10 laps Schumacher's fastests in 2004 surpass Hamilton's eight in 2015, as does his overall total of 77-52.
Hamilton made his F1 debut in 2007 with McLaren at age 22.
Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen won the title that year by a Hamilton point, starting with nine straight podiums and a first victory in Canada after taking a first pole.
McLaren tweeted Hamilton Sunday with a bottle of champagne and the words "You never forget the first one."
When he won his first title the following year, at age 23, Hamilton was the youngest world champion until Sebastian Vettel in 2010.
In an extraordinary setting, Hamilton won the 2008 championship by overtaking at the last corner of the Brazilian GP to finish fifth and defeat Ferrari's Felipe Massa by one point. The Italian team was celebrating wildly when Hamilton broke hearts in Massa's home race.
The next four years saw Red Bull's dominance with four Vettel titles from 2010-13.
Then came the decision that defined Hamilton's career.
He joined his old friend from junior karting, Nico Rosberg, at Mercedes. Observers questioned the move and in 2013 Hamilton won just one race, while Vettel finished the season with 13.
"I thought we would win so many races? Of course not, ”Hamilton said Sunday of his Mercedes move.
By late 2013, Vettel loomed as the biggest threat to Schumacher's records. The German driver is two and a half years younger than Hamilton and, at the time, led 4-1 in titles and 39-22 in victories.
But then another key moment happened when F1 engines changed, with the arrival of the 1.6-liter hybrid. Mercedes made the best transition and the results were instantaneous with 16 wins in 19 races in 2014.
Hamilton sealed the title on the final day, again, albeit only due to an eccentric double-point rule introduced for the final race by then-F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone. Rosberg, who before the race told his rival to "drive clean," took pole position and made a terrible start to finish 14th, while Hamilton sealed the No. 2 title with a victory.
Hamilton was dominant in 2015, sealing his third F1 title at the United States Grand Prix with three races to spare. In the cool-down room, Hamilton dismissively tossed a No. 2 beanie at Rosberg. It seemed like a calculated humiliation and Rosberg clearly angrily rejected it. This would be a symbol of how a relationship that was once strong during their karting days turned very bitter.
It also drove Rosberg to better himself.
The German driver won the first four races of 2016 during a campaign that turned into a psychological war of attrition between drivers.
They collided at the Spanish GP and they met at the Belgian GP. They exchanged spikes and reproaches as Hamilton raced back to take the championship to a final under the spotlight in Abu Dhabi.
But Rosberg had a 12-point lead, and although Hamilton won, Rosberg's second place earned him a title to equal his father Keke Rosberg's 1982 title. Days later, Rosberg surprised F1 by retiring and this made things considerably easier for Hamilton. Mercedes' decision to hire Valtteri Bottas, a driver of modest success, was shrewd.
Freed from disputes and with a calm teammate driving, unofficially as No. 2, Hamilton won the next two championships in 2017 and 2018 when Vettel blew the mid-season lead for Ferrari. If Rosberg had stayed, he probably would have taken victories from Hamilton and this would have helped Vettel.
Because Bottas has never mounted a challenge like Rosberg did. Last year's title was emphatic as Hamilton won 11 races compared to Bottas' three, finishing 87 points ahead of him.
Hamilton will likely seal his seventh title soon and possibly have enough points already, even if he didn't finish any of the last five races. Yet he has done much more this year, emerging as a distinctive voice against racial injustice.
"He lives his life on his sleeve," said tennis star Serena Williams, a close friend. "He says what he says and that's what he is ... So that's something I've really come to appreciate about him."
Hamilton has a tattoo on his back that says "I'm still up," the name of a poem written by Maya Angelou, an American civil rights activist.
Hamilton, who spoke of enduring racism as a child, has risen to all challenges this far.
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