Three drivers fighting for the title
The 2007 world championship was one of the most hard-fought in the history of Formula 1, and the Drivers’ standings still testify today how intense the battle between Ferrari and McLaren was until the very end: the title was won by Kimi Raikkonen (still today the last world champion for the Maranello house), but with only a one-point lead over Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, who finished on equal points. 2007, moreover, was Hamilton’s debut year, who then had the chance to make up for it in 2008, again with a race full of twists and turns at the Interlagos circuit.
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Comparisons with other rookies in top teams
A talent, that of the Briton, which immediately struck Nelson Piquet Jr., son of the three-time Brazilian world champion. Speaking on the Pelas Pistas podcast, Piquet compared the debut season of the future Sir Lewis to those of other drivers such as Oscar Piastri or Andrea Kimi Antonelli, believing that the latter did not have the same confidence and determination as the Englishman against a teammate of the caliber of Alonso (that year’s defending world champion), in a championship that saw the future seven-time world champion win four races, not to mention the nine consecutive podiums obtained from the first GP.
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A title fight that faded away at the aforementioned Interlagos, when Hamilton was betrayed by a gearbox problem in the early stages of the race: “Hamilton’s first season was much more significant than the championships he won with his hands tied, despite having a great car – declared Piquet Jr. – and that’s what really matters, because today we see what Oscar Piastri did in his first season against Lando, which was nothing special, he suffered a rather heavy defeat. Let’s see what Kimi Antonelli did against Russell in his first season. Then let’s take what Lewis did in his first season against Alonso, I think only we, those who work in the industry, can analyze it, right? The confidence he had in his first year was incredible. Hamilton, Piastri and Antonelli have all a thing in common: they started their careers in one of the “big four” teams.
