Method 1’s greatest-ever driver has solely ever crossed the road twice in an F1 race in a decrease place than his first ever time in a automobile.
Like most of his profession, Lewis Hamilton’s first ever run in a single-seater automobile has develop into the stuff of legends – however his first race, much less so.
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The seven-time world champion’s rise via the racing ranks is well-known, having made his title as a karting prodigy.
He caught the attention of McLaren boss Ron Dennis throughout the televised Champions of the Future occasion held in 1996.
Then 5 years later at Mallory Park in Leicestershire on October 17, 2001, a 16-year-old Hamilton made the soar from karting to racing vehicles.
He was tasked with following in Kimi Raikkonen’s footsteps by being positioned at Manor Motorsports, with the ‘Iceman’ mopping up the 2000 Method Renault UK collection with the group 12 months prior.
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“You’ve acquired to remember that this man had by no means pushed a automobile earlier than, even a street automobile,” then Manor group supervisor Tony Shaw informed Motorsport Journal.
“I bear in mind [Manor driver coach] Marc [Hynes] having to drive him round and educate him how a clutch labored! It was actually in on the deep finish for him, particularly utilizing the gear lever and all that form of stuff.
“You could possibly inform right away he wasn’t petrified of it. It was a reasonably bumpy expertise at Mallory, particularly into the primary nook – there was an enormous previous soar into there that set the automobile leaping a few bit.”
Hamilton had an off on the high-speed Gerard’s Bend on his first day of testing, however however, signed with Manor for the two-round Method Renault UK Winter Sequence.
F1’s future GOAT was straight into aggressive motion weeks later, the place confirmed Method Ford racer Rob Bell topped qualifying in his first official race in spherical one at Rockingham.
Newcastle-born Bell, who had raced an FR2.0 automobile as soon as earlier than, bested Method 3 racer Julien Piguet to win whereas Hamilton was categorised fifteenth.
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Solely twice has the latter ever crossed the road in F1 in a decrease place.
That was when he took 18th on the 2009 German Grand Prix, and sixteenth at Silverstone the identical 12 months in McLaren’s uncompetitive MP4-24.
He was categorised nineteenth within the 2012 European Grand Prix however hadn’t been operating on the finish, together with his sixteenth place at Azerbaijan 2021 upgraded a spot because of Nicholas Latifi’s penalty to match that first outing at Rockingham.
Hamilton’s second-ever race noticed him simply miss out on a podium in fourth, however once more it was Bell who crossed the chequered flag first.
It was the identical story throughout the title-deciding second spherical at Donington Park every week later as Bell took one other double win.
The champion then defended the title the next 12 months in 2002 as nicely, however the pair by no means had the possibility to share the F1 grid collectively.
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Bell completed fifth within the 2004 Method Renault V6 championship, however his single-seater profession got here to an finish after failing to safe sponsorship to say his place on the grid for the F1-supporting GP2 marketing campaign.
“Having had a very good 12 months at a excessive stage final 12 months I had excessive hopes,” he mentioned, as per Chronicle Reside in 2005. “However I couldn’t discover sufficient sponsorship to do the GP2 and that has left me with an enormous drawback.
“I do not wish to drop again down a stage. However it does not go away me a lot. I’ve been trying onerous at taking a brand new path, maybe in sportscars or touring vehicles, and I hope I can do one thing in direction of the tip of the 12 months.
“The following large race I am hoping to do is Le Mans. By way of profile, that is second solely to F1, and it could be a step ahead for me.
“The game has develop into so political lately that it is onerous to get wherever. It is vitally irritating.”
Bell switched to sportscars and finally carved out a special profession in motorsport earlier than hanging up his helmet after 13 seasons as a McLaren manufacturing facility driver final 12 months.
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The winner of two Le Mans Sequence class titles has since taken up a administration function inside McLaren Automotive’s motorsport arm.
“I’m stepping down as a McLaren manufacturing facility driver and undoubtedly retiring from skilled racing, although I’m not ruling out the odd one-off,” Bell informed Autosport.
“I’m actually proud of my determination: I’ve had some good instances, loved it rather a lot and had some first rate success, so I’ve ticked plenty of bins.
“I at all times mentioned to myself that 45 can be a very good age to cease, as long as I had one thing else to do.
“The celebrities have aligned at McLaren to permit it to occur the best way I needed.”
McLaren famously have been the group Hamilton made his F1 debut with and the place he gained the primary of his seven world championships.
He made the transfer to Mercedes in 2013 however nonetheless described his previous group as his ‘unique household’ final July.
The Brit now has a brand new household with Ferrari, the place satirically defending constructors champions McLaren are set to be his chief rival in his bid for an outright document eighth title.