Hamilton’s 50 grand prix wins in pictures

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Last weekend Lewis Hamilton became the third driver in the history of Formula One to score 50 wins.

In his tenth year of Formula One, Hamilton has never failed to win at least one race in every season he has competed in. Here are all 50 of his victories to date in pictures.

2007

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, Montreal, 2007

McLaren took a risk by putting a rookie in one of their cars in 2007 but their faith was instantly rewarded. Hamilton finished on the podium first time out in Melbourne, and returned to the rostrum in each of his first nine races.

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That run included a breakthrough win in Canada and follow-up victory the next weekend in the USA. Further wins in Hungary and Japan but him on the brink of championship glory, but a stunning turnaround in the final two races allowed Kimi Raikkonen in to grab the crown.

2008

Start, McLaren, Melbourne, 2008

Hamilton bounced back from the disappointment of his final-round defeat by winning the first race of the new season in Melbourne.

Four more wins in 2008 proved enough for Hamilton to clinch the title – and it would have been five had it not been for a controversial disqualification at Spa. That handed victory to Felipe Massa, who came within one lap of beating Hamilton to the title in Brazil.

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, Shanghai, 2008

2009

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, Hungaroring, 2009

McLaren and Hamilton’s fortunes took a downward turn in 2009 with the uncompetitive MP4-24. But a major mid-season update transformed the car, and Hamilton took two wins.

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, Singapore, 2009

2010

Jenson Button arrived to replace Heikki Kovalainen and, to the surprise of many, won two races in the MP4-25 but Hamilton had won any. But it was Hamilton who put the most convincing title bid together and was still in the hunt at the final race. He ended the season just 16 points behind champion Sebastian Vettel.

2011

In a difficult 2011 season in which he was involved in an unusual number of collisions, Hamilton nonetheless picked up three more wins including a gem of a drive at the Nurburgring.

2012

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, Montreal, 2012

Another year of what might have been as a string of car problems ended Hamilton’s championship bid. The MP4-27 failed too often but it was also quick, and he collected four wins over the course of the season.

However it was after a gearbox problem robbed him of a potential victory at Singapore that Hamilton finally took the plunge and threw his lot in with Mercedes.

2013

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Hungaroring, 2013

A single victory in 2013 left many wondering whether Hamilton had taken the right decision by switching teams. The doubters were quickly disproved.

2014

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Sepang International Circuit, 2014

Mercedes had worked harder and earlier on the new 2014 engine regulations than their rivals, and increased their budget too. The result was they began 2014 with a standard-setting power unit which no one has since been able to beat.

A combination of technical problems and a few run-ins with his team mate Nico Rosberg left Hamilton on the back foot until late in the season. With double points on offer at the last race of the year left the title remained in doubt until Rosberg’s car broke down in Abu Dhabi. Hamilton won the world champion for a second time – and ten races as well.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2014

2015

Title number three was straightforward by Hamilton’s standards: he routed Rosberg for much of the year, though a tactical error at Monaco cost him a victory in the Principality. It didn’t matter: his ninth win of the year at the Circuit of the Americas secured a third championship.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Circuit of the Americas, 2015

2016

Reliability problems and slow starts have so far compromised Hamilton’s efforts to claim the championship for a third year. But his 50th career victory in Austin last weekend keeps him in the running with three races to go.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Circuit of the Americas, 2016

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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61 comments on “Hamilton’s 50 grand prix wins in pictures”

  1. Laurence Davighi1
    25th October 2016, 13:21

    Lewis also won in Germany in 08

  2. That MP4-22 is such a beautiful car!

      1. Looks really good! One of my all time favourites. My favourite spec of the car would probably be the Spain/Monaco spec.

          1. Stunning. Just stunning. Love those viking horns!

  3. Four more wins in 2008 proved enough for Hamilton to clinch the title

    Pretty certain Lewis won 5 times in 2008 (Melbourne, Monaco, Silverstone, Germany and China).

    1. @geemac Sorry the preceding line was missing, have fixed it now.

  4. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
    25th October 2016, 14:34

    I really hope 2017 proves more competitive. And for a driver especially.
    Max Verstappen

    Yeah, many might have thought I was about to say Seb (of course I want a Ferrari rise!) but Max Verstappen has started his career in a very similar way than Lewis. Supported from the feeder series. Promoted to F1 very young (too young for Max? I don’t buy that) and even with the all-winning Mercedes, Max has already had his maiden victory.
    Lewis has enjoyed a very competitive car throughout most of his career. I won’t say a dominant car all his career since it would be a lie, but he has had better chances to win since his debut in 2007. Especially because there was not a car like that Mercedes he enjoys now, to deny him the 9 wins he had in both 2007 and 2008.

    Someone told me once that he is definitely a better driver than Seb (this year, undeniable ok?) because Seb is about to complete a second full season without a win. But the machine is always important, and for Seb this year, the strategy, which seems to be a forgotten art at Ferrari. Lewis at least had a car closer to the pace of the “dominant” Red Bull in 2010 and 2012 (those 2 years, the Red Bull was not an all-winning car), even in 2011 and 2013, Red Bull started quite on par with other teams as well (and don’t forget the many poles Mercedes got in 2013, getting ready for the big leap).

    Going back to Max, if Red Bull gives him a car that can challenge for wins by itself next year, (not as this year, when the 2 victories came after the Spain crash and the Malaysia DNF for Lewis), we can see what he is made of. I have the hunch that in that case, Ricciardo won’t be as smiley as usual. Max seems to be the real deal, so he definitely needs a car that can challenge Mercedes. And Mercedes, when challenged, gets a little Ferrari-esque: Nervous and not so effective.

    1. rosbergwillstillloseit
      25th October 2016, 14:49

      verstappen is the most overrated driver on the grid, sainz is so much more consistent

      1. Max took almost triple the points while they were together.

        1. rosbergwillstillloseit
          25th October 2016, 22:10

          sainz had tons of bad luck and beat him in qualifying

          1. But that wouldn’t have led to Sainz beating Verstappen, nor being more consistent in races.

      2. Agreed. Verstappen is hyped up so much and Ricciardo is beating him comfortably at the moment, and Verstappen has been making silly mistakes. On top of that, the Verstappen fanbase is easily the worst in F1. I won’t say that Sainz is better, but he was definitely more unlucky with reliability than Verstappen was.

        1. rosbergwillstillloseit
          25th October 2016, 22:16

          i honestly half of the grid could do better in that red bull NOW, we just don’t know how much room to improve verstappen has

          1. rosbergwillstillloseit
            25th October 2016, 22:16

            *i honestly think

        2. @ultimateuzair The Verstappen fanbase are the WORSED no doubt. here in Holland Dutch media really overhype him way too much, on site’s like F1today the Dutch version these people there are totally messed up bashing Hamilton at every given’ opportunity. Verstappen has shown very little since his lucky win in Spain and is getting more arrogant, hearing voices in his head such as box box box lol. He needs to watch out RBR will not ditch him because Helmut Marko already has criticized Verstappen

    2. and even with the all-winning Mercedes, Max has already had his maiden victory

      He did get that maiden win in a race where the all conquering Mercedes only made it to the fourth corner… ;)

      1. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
        25th October 2016, 18:35

        @geemac but you can remember his defense against Dan, right? And Dan is not average, but above.

        1. @omarr-pepper That’s very true, but it is hard to imagine that he could have finished any higher than 3rd had the Mercedes made it past turn 4.

  5. That 2009 McLaren was an abomination! It hasn’t got any better with the passage of time….
    But I’m struggling to think of a car in the modern era that was developed throughout the year so successfully. In the first part of the year it was an absolute disaster, a joke. Then by the end of the summer it won on merit in Hungary, which was completely out of the question not long before.

    1. +1

      Hamilton words still echoes: “I’m heavier than a freaking boat. Guys you need to build me a new car. We need a new car.”

    2. Didn’t it also retire from the lead twice?

    3. The 2013 Sauber was was developed throughout the year quite successfully i would say.

  6. The crazy stat is that he’s the only driver to have won in every F1 season he took part.

    1. @jeff1s As pointed out he’s been the only driver every lucky enough to be given a race winning car in his rookie season, on top of that there haven’t been many who’ve had machinery capable of winning races every season he’s been in Formula One.

      1. Using that logic, Nico would be a “lucky” Champion because he works for Mercedes. It just doesn’t work that way. Results speak for themselves. There are No asterisks by Hamilton’s wins or by Rosberg’s Title if it works out that way.

      2. Of course there haven’t been many, but out of the few who have, he is the ONLY one who has achieved it. And luck isn’t the whole story. A certain German called Sebastien Vettel has had a cars capable of winning at least a single race in a season….however, it hasn’t happened.

        1. OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
          25th October 2016, 18:43

          @kbdavies that certain German had one of his best friends and hero got into a coma that 2014. He won’t admit it out loud, but that must be pretty hard to endure.

          1. So the reason why Seb didn’t win in 2014 was because of what happened to MSC?

        2. Think the 2008 Torro Roso is not comparable to any of the cars Hamilton has been in. That was not a race winning car, more a car that happened to win in 2008.

      3. And this doesn’t make his record any less impressive. How many wins did Mark Webber had in 2013?? And Massa in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013?? Raikkonen won how many races last year? Vettel in 2014? All of these had cars capable of winning races, none of them got a single one on those years. So winning in every season is a very impressive stat from Lewis.

      4. he’s been the only driver every lucky enough to be given a race winning car in his rookie season

        Well that isn’t true. And tbf, if you excluded partial seasons he would be joined by Fangio.

      5. The difference between “Good” and “Great” is the good sports people do well, but the great sports people excel. The best artists have the best brushes, but even if they don’t they can still produce great art; the best musicians have the best instruments, but even if they don’t they can still produce great music; and the best racing car drivers have the best racing cars, but even if they don’t they can still produce good results. If Hamilton were to drive for Manor or Sauber then he wouldn’t win races, but he would still produce good results.

      6. the only driver every lucky enough to be given a race winning car in his rookie season

        It would have be luck if he won the McLaren drive in a raffle but he didn’t he earned it. Plus there are 2 world champions on the grid who have failed to win a race in a race winning car (Seb and Kimi). Whichever way you cut it it is an impressive feat.

        1. Actually it’s 3, with Alonso in 2004. I agree, it’s mpressive to win races in 10 straight years.

          1. Oh yeah I had completely forgot about Trulli’s win!

      7. @xtwl Man….. you really don’t like this guy, do you?

    2. Of the races he won too, there are a good number of them that he shouldn’t have won given the machine he had! Not a lot of drivers can win in inferior machinery on a regular basis like Lewis has.

      1. That is a bit of stretch. If you look at all of his F1 seasons, only in 2009 did Lewis score a win when his teammate did not, and that was against Kovalainen(granted, it was a pig of car, but they really got the KERs working in spite of itself the second half of the season). All other seasons he has been in a race winning chassis. Rosberg even managed 2 wins out of the 2013 Mercedes to Hamilton’s 1 win, which is the only other time I would consider that Hamilton had inferior machinery.

        1. I can’t let that go – sorry but Rosberg won after the two drivers in front of him SV and LH had DNF,s!

          Rosberg had no chance of winning that race other than that and only the dreamers think that on any given season he has any more than a 50% chance of a race win if his team mate is anywhere in the running. Thems the stats like it or not and that’s with the inherited wins, questionable driving and some amazing reliability incidents and pit errors. Of his wins, it’s not hard to find at least six he inherited. Can you find similar for Alonso, Seb or Lewis?

          And then we get to this year…

          1. @Drg — I absolutely agree, sometimes there is a bit of luck involved, but you also cannot say Lewis would have automatically won the British Grand Prix because the W04 was terrible with tire wear. The Mercedes were always qualifying near the front that season, but rarely ended up with a great result to show for it. Plus, the win Rosberg got in 2013 Monaco was on merit and not gifted to him, so that doesn’t dilute my comment that Lewis’s teammates have also won in equal machinery.

  7. It always shocks me how some people get out of their way to try to belittle Lewis achievements. Yes, he started his career in a top team but this doesn’t make his records any less impressive.

    The fact that he had a winning car since the beginning has nothing to do with luck. McLaren put their confidence in the guy and he delivered if he didn’t I’m pretty sure they would’ve fired the guy a long time ago.

    Almost ten years after the guy debut he still is racking up Gp wins, pole positions and have 3 WDCs under his belt, yes people is still trying diminish the guy.

    Go figure. :)

    1. @Mp4-23 Well said. I really don’t get it. We have millions going bezerk for the England football team. No problem with that, nothing wrong with supporting your national team on the global stage. Yet sadly, they haven’t brought anything home since 1966.

      Here we have one of the most successful British sporting legends of all time and people fall over themselves trying to dismiss it as ‘yeah whatever?’

      I know Lewis has a huge following all around the world, a fair one in the UK too. But there’s nearly always an undertone of negativity brewing somehow, whenever Lewis is mentioned.

      Utterly bizarre. Still, he rises and he’s not finished yet! :)

  8. I occasionally forget just how talented Hamilton is. He exceeded expectations in first season in F1, driving for a top team and beating a double world champion teammate (and arguably best driver on the grid) in Alonso, winning the drivers’ championship the following year, and reaching the top step of the podium each season since is a phenomenal achievement. Not only that, but knowing when to jump ship for the benefit of your driving career is a skill in itself. The decisions of others (namely the aforementioned Spaniard) have not been quite as savvy. I think the circus and his rivalries have gotten the better of him in recent seasons, and a chink in his armour (his starts) has surfaced this year, but overall, the guy is a fantastic driver. I hate that he was forced to endure grotesque, despicable racism in Spain early in his career.

    1. @newfangled I’ll never forget who Hamilton got criticized for leaving McLaren for Mercedes who was a midfield team. People said the most stupid things back then, i remembered it was huge news (here in The Netherlands) who never actually covered F1 news. Hamilton helped improve the car for the 2013 season and Mercedes made staggering progress while McLaren felt back so hard.

  9. I don’t like him and I don’t like his style but isn’t he a great driver? Of course he is! It’s a shame that Mercedes has been miles ahead of his rivals so his victories look much less spectacular and quite easy. However we have enough proof from 2007-2013 how good he is. There might have been a few erratic races but Hamilton was always there, right from the beginning. Qualifying or race, dry or wet, whatever circuit, Lewis is always competitive. Just like Alonso, although I rate Hamilton a fraction faster though a bit less consistent.

  10. What hurts the most for me is that had it not been for the engine blowup a few races ago he would be cruising to his 4th WDC.
    Just cannot help feeling that Merc are assisting Nico.

    1. Trust me they are not, just make peace with that fact, take the tinfoil hat off and move on :)

  11. Michael (@freelittlebirds)
    26th October 2016, 13:24

    Great tribute for a very, very special driver – here’s some food for thought.

    Lewis is the only driver who can say that he outperformed his team many times in a championship bid – 2007, 2012, 2014 and 2016 are examples where Lewis was actually better than his team. If you add 2010, that’s half the years he’s been racing. If you want to invest in a driver Lewis is the best investment – you just have to make sure the rest of the team can keep up with him – even the best teams have trouble doing so.

    1. @freelittlebirds Don’t forget the first half of 2011 where Hamilton had some epic races. For some reason people always overlook Germany 2011 but that was i think one of his most epic win.

    2. How can you outperform someone you did not even score a point more than…re 2007.

    3. Actually 2008 – absolutely everyone disregards the fact he won a championship in a car that did NOT win the constructors.

      Only Prost and Shumi can say that and no one racing competitively in this century.

  12. For me personally Germany 2011 was Hamilton’s most EPIC victory, here the BBC highligt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-acsKszvYOo

    1. For me Fuji 2007 was lewis’ most epic win, one of the best races I’ve ever seen hands down.

      1. @mp4-23 Yeah he schooled the whole grid including Alonso, similar like Silverstone 2008 where Hamilton lapped the whole field bar two guys.

        1. Yeah, I remember that day vividly I was on the edge of my seat, eight years after that day I still can not explain how Lewis was able to find so much grip on that soaking wet track.

  13. I don’t even like Lewis; I’m old school and don’t care for his “rap bling thing”. But that’s my problem, not Lewis’. Having said that, his having won in every season, great cars, good cars, just-OK cars, is mighty impressive. Anyone that claims otherwise is just being dishonest with themselves.

  14. That Hungary 2013 victory is quite special. Red Bull upgraded their cars to ensure the WDC go to either of their driver. Adrian Newey made new parts for the car that made it really faster: Seb Vettel won 9 races in row later on.
    Those parts were on the car in Hungary, and it should have been a RB win. But the Autrian team was not up to the task strategically and Hamilton was on fire. He beat a very talented driver in a faster car. Just like two years before in Germany…

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