Lewis Hamilton’s Record-Breaking Nine Silverstone Victories
The British Grand Prix was a thrilling show, shortly before the F1 summer break. Lewis Hamilton was the star of the show that race day.
With his victory at the British Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton continued his winning run at Silverstone. A record-breaking ninth victory sees the seven-time champion now hold the record for the most wins at a single venue. He matched fellow seven-time champion Michael Schumacher’s record for most victories in a single country, with nine.
Lewis Hamilton’s Silverstone win run stretches back to as early as his second season in the sport when he dominated on a sodden circuit to thrill the fans. The Mercedes racer also took his twelfth consecutive podium here, taking his overall tally to 15 at the venue.
With the 39-year-old on cloud nine after his most recent home triumph, let’s travel down memory lane and relive Hamilton’s Silverstone wins from the history books.
2008 – Hamilton delivers special drive to take home victory
The stage was set for a typical race at Silverstone. Fans gathered in droves, drivers and teams excited to race at the venue, along with the British weather intervening to lay down a marker for Hamilton to excel, and thrill his home fans.
Starting fourth behind teammate Heikki Kovalainen, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, and Red Bull’s Mark Webber, Hamilton’s lightning start off the five red lights saw him fly past the latter two, and almost into the lead at Copse, turn one during races at Silverstone back then. Hakkinen, though, held firm until lap four, when Hamilton made an iconic move into Stowe corner to take a race lead he would never relinquish.
While victory was guaranteed barely halfway in, the sheer level of domination stood out. Tackling the extreme wet weather with aplomb, he danced his McLaren around the famous corners of Silverstone. Comfortably quicker than anyone on the same driver, Hamilton grew his lead with every passing lap. He took victory after 60 laps on a rain-ravaged Silverstone circuit by a staggering margin of 68 seconds to second-placed Nick Heidfeld.
Talk about laying down a marker at home for fans to remember!
2014 – Hamilton’s first Silverstone win for Mercedes
Having joined Mercedes a year prior, Hamilton had found form early in 2014. Four consecutive victories reversed fortunes after a DNF in the season opener in Australia. However, the Briton had lost ground to teammate Nico Rosberg at Monaco, Canada, and Austria, with Rosberg winning two of these races at Monaco and Austria.
Therefore, Silverstone would be an important round for Lewis Hamilton to bounce back, and close a gap that had swelled to 29 points. A wet qualifying would see Rosberg take pole, while Hamilton qualified only P6 for the race.
He’d never won from sixth on the grid before, but Hamilton put in a measured drive on race day, utilising the pace in his Mercedes to move past those ahead to slot into second. He would inherit first as Rosberg suffered a gearbox failure midway through the race, cruising to victory ahead of Valtteri Bottas, half a minute ahead.
2015 – Hamilton aces conditions late to win
2015 had started strongly for the reigning world champion, with Lewis Hamilton winning four races out of eight as the grid headed into Silverstone for the British Grand Prix, this time 10 points in the ascendancy from Rosberg.
Having started from pole in front of a 140,000-strong audience, Hamilton would display his sheer class. A poor start saw both Mercedes usurped by the fast-starting Williams cars of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas. However, the silver arrows would stay close, and Hamilton executed an undercut to perfection to jump past race-leader Bottas after the pit stops.
With rain forecast for the end of the race, Hamilton grew his lead to over three seconds, before dashing into the pits for intermediate tyres just as the rain fell, extending the gap to his teammate to nine seconds to take a second-consecutive home victory.
2016 – Hamilton’s Silverstone win masterclass in the rain
Lewis Hamilton was starting to bounce back after a difficult start to 2016, having been the victim of poor reliability and incidents in the opening five races of the season, four of them going to teammate Rosberg. With a fight on his hands, Hamilton had to find form and score big.
Capitalising on Red Bull’s slow pit stop and Ferrari’s gambles not going to plan, Hamilton won at Monaco and Canada, clawing back vital ground in the standings. At the same time, he would snare victory after contact on the last lap with Rosberg ahead.
Heading into Silverstone, Hamilton sat 11 points behind his teammate and looked to carry on the momentum at his home event. He would set the tone on Saturday, taking his 55th pole in the sport, ahead of Rosberg and Verstappen.
The typical British summer would hit on race day, a spell of rain before the race mandating a start on intermediates. In conditions favouring him, Hamilton pulled away, opening a gap of five seconds after pitting during a virtual safety car.
While Rosberg duelled with Verstappen and passed around the outside of Chapel corner, Hamilton was unperturbed. He would take a fourth victory at home by over eight seconds to the good, narrowing the gap ahead to one point in the standings. Rosberg was later demoted to third, after receiving a penalty for receiving assistance from the team to sort out a gearbox issue. This was a measure outlawed at the start of the season.
2017 – Hamilton takes chunks out of Vettel’s lead with crucial home win
Another year, another Lewis Hamilton special at Silverstone. This win was essential in his battle with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who had continually maintained a championship lead for the entire season. The German led by 20 points as the field headed into England.
Once again, it was Hamilton starting from pole, as Vettel was only third, over eight-tenths off Hamilton’s stellar pole lap. The Mercedes’s dominance continued into the race. Hamilton streaked ahead, while Vettel found himself dealing with Verstappen and Bottas behind.
Late in the race, Vettel ceded third to Bottas, before a late-race puncture dropped him down to seventh on the road. Hamilton, on the other hand, cruised to victory, over 14 seconds clear of second-placed Bottas. The win helped narrow the gap in the standings to one point, a significant swing in the standings.
2019 – Hamilton’s sixth Silverstone win takes him clear
Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes had experienced a roaring start to 2019, the Briton taking the spoils in five out of seven rounds. However, the team’s run was broken in Austria, when Verstappen outshone the rest with a stellar victory drive.
With the championship leaders eager to strike back, Mercedes set the tone for the weekend. Bottas pulled out a strong lap in qualifying to take pole, only increments ahead of Hamilton. The two silver arrows then scrapped fiercely during the early stages of the race. Bottas resisted Hamilton’s attempts to pass, wresting back the lead on lap two at Copse.
The race would swing in the five-time champion’s favour on lap 19, with Antonio Giovinazzi’s stricken Alfa Romeo necessitating a safety car. Hamilton pitted and emerged in the race lead, while Bottas had pitted under normal racing conditions three laps earlier.
While action ensued further back, Hamilton drove a serene race out front. He had extended the gap out front to almost a pit stop ahead to teammate Valtteri Bottas, winning by a whopping 24 seconds. Hamilton showed he still had enough in reserve, nailing the fastest lap on the final tour of the race.
It was a special way to cap off a record sixth British Grand Prix victory, taking him clear at the top as the most prolific winner on English soil.
2020 – Hamilton wins Silverstone again, on three wheels
After a delayed start to the pandemic-shortened 2020 F1 season, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes arrived at Silverstone for round four.
The silver arrows were ruthless in qualifying, Hamilton’s pole lap over a second clear of the next closest constructor—ominous signs for the race ahead.
As anticipated, the dominance carried on to Sunday’s main race. An early safety car allowing the leading quartet to pit and emerge in their positions. However, it would be a lengthy 33-lap stint till the end, a stretch for the tyres around the track.
Sure enough, drivers began to feel the tyre wear, with Bottas and Carlos Sainz suffering late race punctures. On the final lap, the camera shot cut to Hamilton going wide at Luffield corner, his front left tyre giving out too!
Yet, Hamilton bravely soldiered on, making the best use of a 33-second gap to Verstappen. The Dutchman made a precautionary pit stop and hared down the road. However, the gap would be enough for the Mercedes driver to win again at home after a tense finish.
2021 – Controversy rages as Hamilton makes it a figure of eight
This was arguably Lewis Hamilton’s most controversial win, the two championship contenders clashing on lap one at Copse corner. Hamilton and Verstappen made contact into the fast right-hander, causing the Dutch racer to crash into the barrier.
The duo had given everyone a trailer during the debut Formula One sprint on Saturday. They duelled fiercely until Copse corner before Hamilton backed out, and held fort.
Now starting second for the race, it was another Hamilton vs Verstappen duel. Both drivers were side-by-side for nine corners until the incident occurred at Copse. The Briton lost the lead to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, while a red flag stoppage allowed the team to conduct repairs.
Hamilton then set off on a mission to win the race, incurring a ten-second penalty for the incident. This would only set him back so far though, as he cleared Lando Norris and Bottas in quick succession. He then cruised up to the rear of Leclerc, overtaking the Monegasque at Copse with only two laps left.
Hamilton crossed the line to take an eighth British Grand Prix victory. With this, he’d matched his tally of eight wins at a single venue alongside the Hungaroring.
2024 – Hamilton beats the odds to win again after three years
Having gone two-and-a-half-seasons without a victory, everyone began to wonder if they’d seen the last of Hamilton winning. The 103-time winner hadn’t won a race since the Saudi Arabian round at Jeddah in 2021, over 900 days ago.
However, Hamilton always goes well around the Silverstone circuit. He’d taken two podiums even during his toughest years in 2022 and 2023. With Mercedes finding an uptick in form, Russell and Hamilton locked out the front row of the grid in qualifying.
It was Lewis Hamilton’s experience coming to the fore on Sunday, as he snatched the lead from Russell in changing conditions. He then capitalised on errors in strategy and pit stops by McLaren, wresting the race lead once again.
As the Red Bull loomed ever larger with every passing lap, Hamilton used every ounce of grip from his softs. The Briton even lifted into high-speed corners late in the race, fending off the threat of Verstappen behind. Hamilton took a record-breaking ninth victory at Silverstone, the outright record for most wins at a single circuit.
It was also Hamilton’s most emotional victory, coming after two and a half seasons of adversity. It ensured he would leave Mercedes on a high note at the end of the season.
