Formula 1 Champions Enduring Longest Win Droughts: A Spotlight on Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso
Formula 1 champions are not immune to experiencing win droughts in their careers, and the recent milestone reached by Lewis Hamilton at the Chinese Grand Prix serves as a stark reminder of this fact. Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, recently hit the milestone of 50 races without a victory, with his last win coming at the 2021 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.
However, Hamilton is not alone in enduring a lengthy winless streak in Formula 1. Fernando Alonso, another former world champion, has been on a quest for victory since his last win at the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix. The Spaniard, often referred to as the “wily old fox,” has struggled to replicate the success he enjoyed during his title-winning days with Renault.
Similarly, other F1 champions like Jacques Villeneuve, Kimi Raikkonen, Emerson Fittipaldi, and Jenson Button have also endured significant winless runs in the sport. Villeneuve, the 1997 champion, went through a drought from Europe 1997 to Germany 2006, while Raikkonen, the 2007 champion, waited over five years for his next victory from Australia 2013 to the United States 2018.
Fittipaldi and Button also faced challenges in securing wins after their championship victories, with the Brazilian enduring an 81-race winless streak from Great Britain 1975 to the United States 1980, and the British driver waiting 78 races from Brazil 2012 to Monaco 2017.
Despite these winless runs, these champions have left an indelible mark on the sport and continue to showcase their talent and determination on the track. As the 2024 F1 season unfolds, fans eagerly await to see if these drivers can break their winless streaks and add to their already impressive legacies in Formula 1.