Lewis Hamilton Bio: Age, Height, Wins, Net Worth
Lewis Hamilton is one of the most successful British motor racing drivers of all time.
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Profile Summary
- Name: Lewis Hamilton
- Year of Birth: 1985
- Nationality: British
- Ethnicity: Black
He rose to fame for winning the World Title in Formula One race five consecutive times, first in 2008 at the age of 23, making him the youngest to do so at that time.
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He is also well known for winning 79 out of the 233 Formula races he has participated in.
Lewis Hamilton age
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) was born January 7, 1985, in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England, to Anthony Hamilton and Carmen Larbalestier.
He is of mixed race, and his father is black while his mother is Grenadian. He was raised Catholic.
At the age of two, his parent got separated. So Lewis, alongside his older half-sisters, Samantha and Nicola, lived with their mother.
His interest in car racing started when his father bought him a radio-controlled car when he was five, and he later competed in the national BRCA championship the following year, where he finished second.
Lewis was often bullied for being black, which led to him learning karate at the age of five.
When he was twelve, he moved to live with his father, who was now remarried. Lewis attended The John Henry Newman School, a Catholic secondary school in Stevenage.
He was the only black kid in his racing club. So naturally, it subjected him to racism.
However, his father was very supportive of his dream, going as far as taking up four different jobs, including working as a dishwasher and glazing salesman, to support Lewis’s dream.
His father, a former IT manager, later set up his own IT company while serving as a manager to Lewis.
In 2001, the young car racer began studying at Cambridge Arts and Sciences (CATS), a private sixth-form college in Cambridge.
While in school, aside from car racing, Lewis was also a part of his school football team.
He later revealed that if Formula One hadn’t worked for him, he would have pursued a career in football or cricket.
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Lewis Hamilton Career
Lewis was signed by McLaren to their Young Driver Support Programme from a young age, after being the youngest driver to win the British cadet karting championship at the age of ten.
He had approached McLaren Formula One team then-boss Ron Dennis and told him that he would be racing one day.
In response to this, Dennis had written in Lewis’s autograph book, “Phone me in nine years, we’ll sort something out then” a few years later like he had said years back, Lewis raced for McLaren.
He won the British Formula Renault, European Formula Three, and GP2 championship in 2006.
In 2007, he had his Formula one debut by becoming a McLaren F1 driver.
Lewis, who was often called “the black driver” in formula one, soon began setting records as he finished second in the 2007 Formula One Championship, just one point behind the winner, Kimi Räikkönen.
The following year 2008, was suitable for the young racer as he won his first World Championship title at the age of 23, making him the youngest to have won that title at that time, also the first and only black to have won raced in Formula One.
However, after his first win, Lewis came close to winning in 2010, where he finished 4th place.
After that, however, the young racer soon became distracted and dealt with some personal crises, including FIA officials’ run-ins.
In 2012, Lewis, however, vowed to come back strong, which he did with, achieving four race wins and coming in 4th place in the standing.
In 2013, he announced that he would be joining Mercedes, replacing retired Michael Schumacher.
His move to Mercedes was met with surprise as many believed that the team was one with no recent victory, however during his first season in the group, Lewis secured a sole race victory, finishing fourth place in the standing.
In 2014, Mercedes recorded 16 wins out of the 19 racing competitions the team participated in, 11 of this win was won by Lewis, who also won the World Championship title of that year.
That same year, thanks to a new driver regulation, the divers could use a particular number for their entire career.
So Lewis went with the number 44, the same number he started his karting with.
As a result, he made more wins, including the World Championship in 2015, 2017, and 2018.
His contract with Mercedes lasted until 2020. However, in July 2021, it was revealed that Lewis had signed a contract extension to continue racing for the team till 2023.
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Lewis Hamilton Personal Life
In 2017, Lewis announced that he had become a vegan and no longer drinks alcohol because he wants to live a healthier life.
However, he has also been criticized for living outside the UK to avoid paying UK taxes.
Lewis Hamilton Relationship
From 2007 to 2015, Lewis Hamilton was in an on-and-off relationship with Nicole Scherzinger, the lead singer of the American girl group “Pussycat Dolls.”
He has also be associated with some other famous singers including, Rita Ora, among others.
Lewis Hamilton Net Worth
Lewis is one of the highest-paid Formula One drivers and the richest British sports star.
His net worth is estimated at £260 million. The former World Champion holder is described as the best-paid Formula One racer, and his salary is said to be £25 million yearly.
