Finally, in 2016, Nico Rosberg beat Lewis Hamilton in his third attempt to win his first F1 World Championship but immediately retired from the sport. Rosberg claimed he was happy with his championship win and felt he had nothing to prove. However, Hamilton’s father Anthony disagreed, claiming that any driver who competes against his son must “plan his career” or he risks ending it.
In an interview with gp247.com in early 2017, Anthony Hamilton fired warning shots at his son’s rivals, saying:
“Anyone who competes against Lewis [Hamilton] must have planned her career right because it could be a career ending if you go up against him.
The senior Hamilton felt his son still had a lot to achieve in the sport despite his age and would return in 2017 with nothing but a desire to win.
Anthony Hamilton said:
“Personally, I think that even though he’s getting older and more mature, he’s actually still in the prime of his career. So he will be a force to be reckoned with this year. All he ever thinks about is winning. He’s happy for Nico [Rosberg], as we all are, to be perfectly honest. We’ve known him for a long time and Nico worked really hard. You need a bit of luck to get there and he had that, but I think Lewis is now just looking forward to winning the championship back on his own.”
Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, 46 podiums combined, from Australia 2008 to Abu Dhabi 2016.
Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, 46 podiums combined, from Australia 2008 to Abu Dhabi 2016. https://t.co/Hxzj9rQpy6
Anthony Hamilton’s comments proved incredibly accurate as the then three-time F1 world champion dominated the sport for the next five years, adding four more titles to his tally.
Without the accident in 2016, Lewis Hamilton would probably have become eight-time F1 world champion
The 2016 F1 season witnessed one of the most intense championship battles in the history of the sport, perhaps surpassed only by the 2021 season. Although Nico Rosberg finally triumphed over his Mercedes team-mate in 2016, Lewis Hamilton fought the German tooth and nail until the last lap at the season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Were it not for a series of misfortunes, including mechanical failures and poor strategy calls from his team, Hamilton could have conceivably won his fourth world title that year and again denied his childhood friend his first.
Lewis Hamilton in 2016 discusses potential teammates to succeed Nico Rosberg
Lewis Hamilton discussed potential teammates to replace Nico Rosberg in 2016 
https://t.co/TDnekbp8f4
But despite losing the title, the Brit bounced back and returned with a bang in 2017, beating a resurgent Ferrari led by Sebastian Vettel.
also readThe article continues below
Interestingly, Lewis Hamilton has had the fewest retirements since 2017, and he also had the longest streak in points up until the 2019 German Grand Prix.
Sign in to reply
