Lewis Hamilton shuts up F1 fans as Brit handed new Lando Norris challenge

Lewis Hamilton has silenced some of the Formula One fans who were doubting him after winning the British Grand Prix. Hamilton’s victory was his first in 945 days since crossing the line first in Saudi Arabia in 2021. His previous longest winning drought was 10 races but this run lasted 56.

The Briton broke into tears on his team radio after seeing the chequered flag and was visibly emotional after climbing out of his cockpit. The 39-year-old enjoyed a teary embrace with his father Anthony.

The victory at Silverstone is his ninth after he fought off Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris. It makes him the first driver in F1 history to win nine times at a single track.

Yet 60 per cent of Express Sport readers in our poll had said that he would not win a race in his final season with Mercedes. The seven-time world champion leaves the Silver Arrows for Ferrari at the end of 2024.

And just 40 per cent backed him to end his lengthy winless streak before that move to the Scuderia. Hamilton has of course now provided the perfect response to those who had no faith in him.

He now has a new challenge too because just three per cent of our nearly 7,000 respondents believe he will win the second most races after Max Verstappen this year. The reigning world champion has seven wins to his name so far.

Behind him, Norris, Mercedes duo George Russell and Hamilton plus Ferrari's partnership of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz all have one victory apiece. But before Hamilton stood on the top step of the podium at Silverstone, very few backed him to end second best to Verstappen this season.

Instead a staggering 79 per cent think Norris will secure the second-most race wins. That’s despite the fact he only claimed the first of his career in Miami in May.

The McLaren driver, 24, has secured three second-placed finishes since then and was third at his home Grand Prix. He admitted in a frustrated interview after his P3: “Threw away the win so pretty disappointed. I'm fed up of saying 'I should have done better'.

“I don't care if it takes time. I should be doing it now. Should we have won a race today? Yes. Did we? No. So I'm not going to be happy with another third place.”

Despite that, Express Sport readers expect more victories to come for the Briton this year. Hamilton's task now is to make sure he collects more than his compatriot. Meanwhile Leclerc collected six per cent of the vote and Sainz amassed five per cent.

Russell was on four per cent with Hamilton on just three. Sergio Perez - despite being in the Red Bull garage across from Verstappen - earned a mere one per cent of the votes.

The Mexican has struggled this season and finds himself 137 points behind his team-mate. He has not finished any higher than fourth in his last seven races.

Hamilton meanwhile will be desperate to keep the momentum after winning the British Grand Prix. He said after: “There's definitely been moments where you know, the thought that this was it, that that (winning races) was never going to happen again.

“So to have this feeling come across the line, I think honestly, I've never cried coming from a win. It just came out of me. And it's a really, really great feeling. I'm very, very grateful for it.”

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff added: “It feels really good that he has been able to put all the negativity aside and come up with this performance. I think it's a weight off his shoulders.”