“How Has Everyone Had Time?”: Lewis Hamilton Left Questioning Everything While People Paid Tribute to Queen Elizabeth

On the 8th of September, Queen Elizabeth II passed away peacefully. The world expressed its sorrow and despair. Tweets flooded in. Obituaries were posted. But there was none from Lewis Hamilton yet.

Hamilton was knighted during Queen Elizabeth’s reign in December 2021 for his achievements in Formula One. He had also been part of a number of other events at the Palace on the invitation of the Queen.

However, he was not the first to post a tribute to her on her passing. His first words came up after qualification at Monza. He was clearly distraught as he said, “I didn’t want to just post. Everyone was just posting immediately afterwards. I was like, ‘How has everyone had time to [process this]?”

“I wanted to take some time to think about it and I was looking at all of these amazing images of her.”

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Hamilton further added how unusual a weekend it was, with the unfortunate event happening just the day prior. He added, “I didn’t know what I was going to feel like, like many of you. All of us have grown up knowing the royal family and watching closely.”

“I remember as a kid I adored Princess Diana and that affected me a lot. Now, I’m just thinking ‘What does that mean?’ We won’t have a Queen now in our lifetime and what does that now mean for the monarchy? I hope that there’s a bright future up ahead still.”

Lewis Hamilton’s concerns for the Queen’s health

The Queen was not in the best of health in 2021 and 2022. She missed a number of important public events due to her tender health.

She missed the opening session of the UK Parliament in May 2022, for the first time in 59 years. In September, her health had worsened. Her last official appearance was when she appointed Liz Truss as the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Hamilton had voiced his concerns regarding her health previously, before the Emilia-Romagna GP. “I know she’s always been a real fighter, so my thoughts are with her. Obviously, I don’t have any other more information so I don’t know more about the situation.”

“My thoughts are with the family. My thoughts are with her. My prayers are with them. Hoping for better news soon.”

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Hamilton grew up in a world with a strong yet gentle Queen. She had a big impact on his and the lives of millions in the UK and around the world. She will be missed.