“He beat everyone in an inferior car”: Lewis Hamilton looks back at Sebastian Vettel’s career as he pays homage to the German legend
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel might’ve been fierce rivals on track , especially during the late 2010s after the German moved to Ferrari. Yet, they were the “closest friends,” and now Hamilton has come out looking back at the four-time F1 champion’s career while paying homage to him.
Sebastian Vettel’s F1 career began like a fairytale, but didn’t have the ending of one. Vettel won his fourth F1 title in 2013 when he was just 26, but then things started moving South. The German pushed the inferior Ferrari to compete with Mercedes in the late 2010s, but it wasn’t meant to be.
Vettel made his F1 debut in 2007, the same year as Lewis Hamilton, and got his first victory in 2008 for Toro Rosso. Vettel dominated the grid from 2010-2013 in Adrian Newey-designed Red Bull, before making the move to Ferrari in 2015.
It was Vettel’s dream to take Scuderia back to winning ways, much like his mentor Michael Schumacher did in the 2000s. In 2017 and 2018, Vettel challenged Lewis Hamilton for the F1 title in a car inferior to the dominant Mercedes.
Reflecting on Sebastian Vettel’s career and his friendship with the German, Lewis Hamilton, in the upcoming documentary about the four-time F1 champion said,
“He beat everyone in an inferior car. That showed that this guy had everything it takes to be a world champion. For me, he is the closest friend I have ever had in the racing world. Sebastian never judged or condemned me.”
Both Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel stood up for what was right and protested against the wrongs. The German supported the seven-time F1 champion when the FIA banned drivers from wearing jewellery.
Lewis Hamilton’s heartfelt tribute to Sebastian Vettel as the German announced his retirement
After a disappointing 2020 at Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel moved to Aston Martin in 2021. However, just after a couple of years at the Silverstone-based team, the German announced that he will be retiring from the sport to focus on his family and the other causes that he believed in.
Lewis Hamilton gave a heartfelt tribute to Vettel, as he said,
“I think everyone is going to miss Seb. I’m really grateful and really honoured actually to have the relationship that I do with him. In general, I think, building [relationships] with a lot of the drivers, there’s a different relationship I feel I have. It’s growing with them, some less than others, but one I’m really, really grateful for is Seb.”
“He’s one of the only drivers that stands for something. What other driver here has really, truly stood for something other than themselves? That’s something to really be admired in a human being. He will be missed on the track. I think he’s probably one of the few drivers that I will always… in 20 or 30 years time, we’ll still be friends,” added Hamilton
Sebastian Vettel continues to make appearances in the F1 paddock, most recently driving Michael Schumacher Ferrari F2002 at the Italian GP weekend.
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