Formula One: Lewis Hamilton GOAT talk is premature

Lewis Hamilton has been in the discussion as perhaps the greatest Formula One driver of all-time. But those talks are still premature.

Lewis Hamilton, 32, secured his fourth career Formula One championship this past season in his 11-year career as a full-time driver in the sport. His fourth title came after a nine-win 2017 season that gave him 40 wins since the start of the 2014 season. He has won three of his four career titles in the four-year span from the 2014 to the 2017 season.

Because of his recent dominance and climb up the record books, there has been chatter about Hamilton possibly being the greatest Formula One driver of all-time. But such talk is premature, especially with how much he still trails the #1 spot in the most significant statistical categories.

Hamilton’s 62 career Formula One victories in 208 starts rank 2nd on the all-time list behind only Michael Schumacher’s 91 career wins in 306 starts. While Hamilton’s win percentage is slightly higher than Schumacher’s, he still has nearly 100 starts to go to match his start total before that comparison can be more fair — unless, of course, he gets to 91 wins before his 306th start.

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Win percentage alone will not determine who the greatest Formula One driver of all-time is; in fact, the top 5 drivers on the all-time win percentage list have only combined for a total of 162 starts, of which 65 have resulted in wins. Schumacher alone has almost twice that combined start total, so Hamilton, despite having more than that combined start total as well, definitely has a long ways to go to pass Schumacher as the greatest Formula One driver of all-time, as his win percentage won’t do it alone.

Hamilton’s four career Formula One championships in 11 full-time seasons rank in a 3rd place tie on the all-time list with Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel’s four titles each, and they rank behind only Michael Schumacher’s seven titles and Juan Manuel Fangio’s five. Again, he still has a long ways to go to become the greatest Formula One driver of all-time if championships are used in the argument.

Next: Who is the greatest Formula One driver of all-time?

Based on what he has been able to do so far in his career, Lewis Hamilton’s statistics definitely raise the question of him being the greatest Formula One driver of all-time. However, that is only if he is able to continue what he is doing for several more seasons. If he retired right now, he would definitely not be considered the greatest, as he is too far behind the top spot in the two key statistical categories. Sure, he is arguably on pace to become the greatest, but he still has to execute and prove that he deserves that title before we give it to him. He is definitely not there just yet.

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