Lewis Hamilton’s clean racing style makes him stand out, with Coulthard calling him an “anomaly” among F1’s aggressive champions.
Is Lewis Hamilton a lamb among wolves? This sums up the opinion of former McLaren F1 driver David Coulthard.
The Scotsman described Lewis Hamilton as an “anomaly” among other great world champions. According to Coulthard, while Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, and Max Verstappen are highly aggressive drivers, Lewis Hamilton exhibits a much smoother and more respectful driving style. An exception, in other words.
“Max deserves to be in the same category as an Ayrton [Senna] or a Michael [Schumacher].”
“I say Lewis, but I put Lewis in brackets because Lewis, in fact, achieved his championship titles in a very, let’s say, non-controversial way.”
“I know there was contact with Max during their first year [2021] of battling at Silverstone—that’s about the only borderline incident I’ve seen from Lewis. He’s a very clean driver, managing to avoid much controversy throughout his career, so he’s this kind of anomaly in the group of villains you’re talking about.”
However, if Lewis Hamilton has such a reputation, could it also be because he was able to dominate races with Mercedes F1 without needing to engage in close, wheel-to-wheel battles with other drivers… except perhaps Nico Rosberg?
“You’re absolutely right. There was a comfortable period for Lewis where they had a car advantage, and he’s an exceptional driver. That doesn’t take away from the results he achieved.”
“Of course, when he went wheel-to-wheel with Max… normally, Max came out ahead because he has that absolute fighting spirit.”
“We’ll debate this beyond our lifetimes about who was right and who was wrong. It transcends other sports.”
According to Coulthard, Max Verstappen is indeed much more aggressive—more so than Senna and Michael Schumacher in their time.
“There will always be those who are seen as pushing the limit,” he explained.
“But what they’ve actually done is redefine the modern era by showing where the line is. Michael did it. Ayrton did it.”
“Max is doing it. And that’s because every generation should be better. Now, better doesn’t mean kinder. Better simply means they deliver.”
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Hamilton: The Polite Anomaly in F1’s Fierce World Hamilton: The Polite Anomaly in F1’s Fierce World
