Hamilton is F1’s G.O.A.T.

Naging pamilyar ako sa Formula 1 racing dahil sa dominance ni Michael Schumacher with the Ferrari at the turn of the century.

Schumacher retired with the most number of championships (7), grand prix wins (91) at pole positions (68). Pero dahil sa kanyang win-at-all-cost mentality ay hindi siya itinuring na outright greatest of all time kahit na hawak niya ang lahat ng significant records sa F1. E once tried to ram his car to a championship rival para makuha ang kampeonato at may iba pang insidente na gumagamit siya ng gulang para ­manalo sa race.

That is not the case with Lewis Hamilton. Mula pa lang sa rookie season niya ay ipinakita na ni Hamilton na superior ang kanyang racing skills at hindi niya kailangang gumamit ng dirty tactics.

Mula rookie season until this year niya ay meron siyang naitalang grand prix win. His 97 pole positions is far and away the current record at nalampasan na rin niya this year ang record ni Schumacher for most grand prix victories. His latest triumph at the Istanbul Grand Prix was his 94th race win sa F1 and he officially claimed his seventh world title para mapantayan ang pinaka-importanteng record ni Schumacher.

Ang panalo ni Hamilton sa Istanbul ay nagpapakita na sadyang angat siya sa mga kalaban. Mercedes was struggling all weekend dahil sa kondisyon ng race track and it was obvious na hindi sila ang fastest car on that particular track. Hamilton finished sixth in ­qualifying and the other Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas was ninth.

Pero pagdating sa race day ay nagawa pa ring manalo ni Hamilton and he actually lapped his teammate who only managed to finish 14th.

Even his main rival na si Sebastian Vettel ay sinabing si Hamilton ang greatest driver ng ­kanilang generation. He can’t say all-time dahil aminado si Vettel na ang kanyang racing hero ay ang kapwa niya German na si Schumacher.

I’m also a Schumacher fan, but Hamilton is simply better and faster. For me, he is F1’s G.O.A.T.

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