Lewis Hamilton’s best F1 wins

With 84 Formula 1 grand prix wins to his name, Lewis Hamilton sits behind only Michael Schumacher in the all-time winners’ list.

Assuming the 2020 season does eventually get underway following the global coronavirus crisis, Hamilton will have the chance to surpass Schumacher’s tally of 91 grand prix wins, as well as equalling the German on seven drivers’ world championship titles.

From his very first victory at the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix until his most recent at the 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Crash.net has analysed all 84 and picked out 10 of the Briton’s very best performances.

Let us know in the comments below which is your favourite and try to rank them in order.

2007 Canadian Grand Prix

Hamilton had already taken the world of F1 by storm after bursting onto the scene with a fantastic third-place finish on his debut in Australia following his graduation from a GP2 title-winning rookie season.

Having started the 2007 season with five consecutive podium appearances, Hamilton claimed both his first pole position and maiden win at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.

Hamilton maintained his lead from pole by fending off McLaren teammate Fernando Alonso’s attack into Turn 1, before increasing his lead throughout the opening stint of the race.

Hamilton was not perturbed by four separate safety car periods - including one following a massive airborne crash for BMW’s Robert Kubica - and drove calmly throughout to seal his first victory and move into the lead of the championship.

2007 US Grand Prix

Hamilton continued his fine form into the next race in the United States as the Briton made it back-to-back poles, outpacing Alonso by less than two-tenths.

Like he did in Canada, Hamilton held Alonso at bay on the run into Turn 1 and surged into an early lead. Alonso shadowed Hamilton throughout as the McLaren pair pushed each other hard, before the Spaniard launched another attack again with 35 laps to go.

Alonso and Hamilton ran side-by-side along the Indianapolis start-finish straight but Hamilton held firm and braked later than Alonso to somehow keep ahead at Turn 1 as he charged to his second win in a row.

2008 British Grand Prix

Hamilton arrived at his home race amid a run of poor form, having failed to score at each of the previous two races which had seen him drop to fourth in the championship.

Qualifying did not go to plan, with Hamilton left to settle with fourth on the grid as his McLaren teammate Heikki Kovalainen took pole. The race started in the wet and a stunning getaway allowed Hamilton to leapfrog Mark Webber and Kimi Raikkonen and challenge Kovalainen for the lead at Copse.

Kovalainen just stayed ahead despite a large wobble as a number of drivers including Webber came into strife in the treacherous conditions. Kovalainen’s lead lasted just four laps before Hamilton dived past at Stowe, sending the crowd into rapture.

From there on in, Hamilton turned in a wet-weather masterclass to claim his first British Grand Prix win by over 68 seconds as he lapped everyone bar his fellow podium finishers. It was the largest margin of victory since the 1995 Australian Grand Prix.

2009 Hungarian Grand Prix

After being involved in two straight title fights, 2009 saw a dramatic downturn in fortunes for McLaren as it dropped down the pecking order following a major technical regulation overhaul.

A win looked unlikely for much of the season with McLaren’s MP4-24 well off the pace, resulting in the reigning world champion scoring just nine points across the opening nine rounds.

But in Hungary, Hamilton pulled off one of the standout drives of his career by claiming an impressive victory from fourth on the grid. He jumped Sebastian Vettel after the Red Bull driver hit drama, before passing Webber and beginning his pursuit of Alonso.

Hamilton’s job was made slightly easier when Alonso’s Renault shed its tyre following a pit stop, putting Hamilton into the lead. Hamilton never looked back and finished 11.5 seconds up the road from Kimi Raikkonen.

2011 Chinese Grand Prix

During the peak of Red Bull’s dominant spell between 2010 and 2013, Vettel had qualified comfortably on pole ahead of the McLaren duo of Jenson Button and Hamilton.

Button and Hamilton jumped Vettel at the start but Vettel fought back to repass Hamilton, before getting back ahead of Button at the first pitstop.

Executing a three-stop strategy, Hamilton closed up to and overtook Button with a brave move down the inside at Turn 1, before setting about cutting the gap to championship and race leader Vettel.

Hamilton caught Vettel by surprise with a brilliant dive at Turn 7 - not usually known as an overtaking spot - with just four laps remaining to snatch an excellent win during what would otherwise prove to be a year of frustration and disappointment for the Briton.

2014 Bahrain Grand Prix

Mercedes enjoyed a dominant 2014 season having aced the V6 hybrid engine change, but that did not stop one of the most entertaining races of the past decade from taking place in Bahrain’s first-ever night race.

Having missed out on pole to Mercedes teammate Rosberg, Hamilton stole the lead on the run to the first corner and fended off Rosberg’s immediate fight back at Turn 4.

A late Safety Car eroded Hamilton’s advantage and resulted in the pack being bunched up, with Rosberg just behind on Soft tyres that were faster and grippier than the Hard compounds Hamilton had on.

During a thrilling 10-lap sprint to the finish, Hamilton came under intense pressure but somehow managed to keep the German behind on multiple occasions to claim his second victory of the season by little more than a second at the chequered flag.

2015 British Grand Prix

The fast-starting Williams duo jumped ahead of front-row sitters Hamilton and Rosberg in a dramatic start to the 2015 British Grand Prix, but Hamilton emerged back ahead following the first pit stop phase.

As rain started to fall, Hamilton looked in danger of losing the lead to Rosberg with the latter enjoying the conditions better at that stage, but an inspired call to stop for intermediates on lap 44 worked perfectly for Hamilton and turned the tide in his favour.

Hamilton leapfrogged Rosberg when the German stopped on the following lap and ultimately eased to his third British Grand Prix victory and second in a row in front of his adoring home crowd.

2018 German Grand Prix

Hamilton arrived in Germany trailing Vettel in the championship standings, so when a hydraulic failure in qualifying left him 14th on the grid with Vettel sealing a home pole, it looked like damage limitation would the aim for Hamilton.

A clever strategy and some impressive tyre management helped Hamilton carve his way through the field, before a late rain shower flipped the race on its head.

Hamilton inherited the lead after Vettel crashed out in the slippery conditions having dominated throughout. He held off a late attack from teammate Valtteri Bottas before Mercedes imposed team orders on its drivers to safely ensure a 1-2 finish on home soil.

Hamilton’s unlikely victory was remarkable and a perfect example of never giving up. He enjoyed a 38-point swing in his favour and moved into a championship he would never relinquish en route to a fifth world title.

2018 Italian Grand Prix

Hamilton started from third on the grid at the high-speed Monza circuit behind the Ferrari pair that had locked out the front row thanks to holding a small straight-line speed advantage in qualifying. 

Hamilton immediately went on the attack and pulled off a stunning around-the-outside pass on Vettel for second place at the Variante della Roggia chicane that left Vettel in a spin and facing the wrong way as the pair made slight contact at the apex of Turn 4.

The world championship leader got past Raikkonen on Lap 4 but the Ferrari driver hit back straightaway to reclaim the lead. After hunting down Raikkonen, Hamilton made a second move with 10 laps remaining as he swept around the outside of the Finn with a clean move into the first chicane.

Hamilton pulled clear to seal a comprehensive win by a margin of 9 seconds over Raikkonen. It began a supreme run of form in the second half of the year, with Hamilton going on to record five more wins from the last seven rounds.

2019 Monaco Grand Prix

Amid a dominant start to the 2019 season, Mercedes had to deal with tragedy when its non-executive chairman Niki Lauda passed away in the week leading up to F1’s star-studded Monte Carlo race.

Despite the team struggling around the tight streets of Monaco in recent years, Hamilton beat Bottas to pole for an all Silver Arrows front-row lockout.

Hamilton, sporting a Niki Lauda tribute helmet, came under massive pressure from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen throughout the 78-lap encounter and was struggling on badly worn tyres after a strategic error from Mercedes not to switch him onto Hards.

Despite this, Hamilton held his nerve to claim his third career victory at Monaco with a drive that the late Lauda would have been proud of. 

Which of Hamilton’s wins comes out on top as his greatest of all time? Is it one from this list or another that we missed out? Let us know in the comments below.