Four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton feels like he can catch seven-time champion Michael Schumacher’s all-time wins record.
Four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton says he has no desire to chase down Michael Schumacher’s all-time Formula One wins record of 91. However, he feels like he can definitely do so, as he just keeps winning and has shown no signs of slowing down.
Hamilton, 32, has now won 62 career races in his Formula One career, a total that is second to only Schumacher’s win total, and he is one win away from his fourth consecutive season of double-digit wins, something no other driver in the history of the sport has ever even been able to do two years in a row. He is definitely in his prime, and as referenced above, he has shown absolutely no signs of slowing down.
Here is what Hamilton had to say about approaching Michael Schumacher’s all-time Formula One wins record.
"“I always wanted to do something similar to Ayrton [Senna] so the dream is expanding into an area that I wasn’t planning on. I can continue winning for a long, long time, and I guess it ultimately depends if the fight remains within me. It is still there now.“There is no desire to chase down Michael [Schumacher], but I am a lot closer than I ever was. Before it felt so distant to get to 91 [race] wins, and while it still feels a long way off, it is not impossible to think I could potentially get somewhere near.”"
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Coming into the 2017 Formula One season, Hamilton, who has driven full-time in the sport since the 2007 season, was in 2nd on the all-time wins list like he is now, but he had 53 career victories and trailed Schumacher by 38 career wins. With nine victories in 18 races so far this season, he now trails him by just 29 wins, and at 32 years old, he may just have enough time to catch him, especially since 40 of his 62 career victories have come since the start of the 2014 season.
However, there has been speculation of Hamilton potentially retiring at some point in the near future, and he has not ruled that out himself, either, which goes to show that he may be telling the truth when he says he has no desire to chase down Schumacher’s record of 91 career Formula One victories. But would he really back down to the challenge?
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There are still so many questions regarding Lewis Hamilton’s future. When will he retire? For how much longer will he be in his prime? For how much longer will he be driving for Mercedes? Is he serious about not worrying about catching Michael Schumacher’s all-time wins record? All of these questions will surely factor in as to whether or not he does, in fact, catch and perhaps pass Schumacher’s record of 91 career wins before he retires.