Why is Lewis Hamilton’s Silverstone Win Special For The Sport of Formula 1?

“I can’t stop crying!,” said Lewis Hamilton, talking to Jenson Button after the race. And we couldn’t either. It is not just a great day for the LH Army but for the entire sport. In 2020, Lewis Hamilton took the chequered flag at Silverstone for the seventh time in his career, but here is the catch: he did it on THREE TYRES!! In 2021, he took his 103rd win at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after which he lost the eighth championship and remained a winless man for the next 945 days, occasionally doubting himself. But it all came together for the 39-year-old at the 2024 British Grand Prix when he found a poetic end to his last home race with Mercedes.

Last race with Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton pays special tribute

In 2012, Lewis Hamilton’s move to Mercedes (a new team) from McLaren (one of the most successful teams in F1) was considered idiotic by many. There were thousands of people claiming that Lewis would regret it forever. However, Niki Lauda and Ross Brawn had convinced him that with Mercedes, he could rewrite history. And he did! Not only did he become the team’s first and most successful champion, but he also became one for F1. 104 wins in F1 is a record that will stay put for generations to come. This wouldn’t have been possible without Mercedes, with whom Hamilton forged the most successful F1 partnerships of all time. This is why the last home race with them is so special.

Asked about his emotions post-race, Hamilton said, “I can’t stop crying! It’s been since 2021, every day getting up, trying to fight, to train, to put my mind to the task, and to work as hard as I can with this amazing team. This is my last race here at the British Grand Prix with this team [before moving to Ferrari], so I wanted to win this so much for them, because I love them, I appreciate them so much, all the hard work they’ve been putting in all over these years. I’m forever grateful to everyone in this team, everyone at Mercedes, all of our partners, and otherwise to all our incredible fans… I could see you lap by lap as I was coming around, and there’s just no greater feeling [than] to finish at the front here.”

Lewis Hamilton taught us to never give up despite the toughest phase of his life

When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going. Lewis Hamilton is the embodiment of this statement. He had never seen a winless season in the first 15 years of his glorious career. But his controversial loss to Max Verstappen in the 2021 Abu Dhabi coincided with Mercedes’ downfall. This left him even more miserable, as there was no chance he could now seek redemption. It is understood that this is also a big reason for his Ferrari move. But he never gave up showing up for work and fighting his hardest every time he set foot on his track, and it all fell into place in the end as poetic justice came knocking on his Mercedes door after 2.5 years and for the last time.

Talking about his winless phase post the Abu Dhabi fiasco, he said, “It’s so tough, I think, for anyone. I think the important thing is just how you continue to get up, and you’ve got to continue to dig deep even when you feel like you’re at the bottom of the barrel. There’s definitely been days between 2021 and here where I didn’t feel like I was good enough, or whether I was going to get back to where I am today, but the important thing is I had great people around me, continuing to support me. My team, every time I turn up and see them putting in the effort, that really encouraged me to do the same thing. Otherwise, my fans, when I see them around the world, they have been so supportive. A big, big thank you to everybody back at the factory, everyone here. I love you guys.”

This is Lewis’ ninth win at Silverstone, which makes him the driver with the most wins at a single circuit (he shared this record with Michael Schumacher before this). Next year, Lewis will return to Silverstone in Red overalls and it will be another uphill climb for him as he will be in unchartered territory trying to write another glorious chapter of his life but until then, take a bow Lewis Hamilton you have made the sport and every stakeholder proud and emotional. Thank you.