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Lewis Hamilton's win at the 2008 F1 British Grand Prix has been hailed as the greatest ever race performance at Silverstone by Top Gear readers. The British magazine's readers reckoned that the then-23-year-old's masterful drive in the wet was above any other achievement at the iconic racing circuit.
The first ever F1 race was held at Silverstone on May 13, 1950. On the 75th anniversary of this occasion on Tuesday, Top Gear posed a question to its readers, asking which race was the greatest at the venue.
The reply from the fans was overwhelmingly in favor of Lewis Hamilton, and his extraordinary display at the 2008 British GP, when the Briton claimed the win amid wet conditions in his McLaren, and lapped all but two drivers during it. This race showcased Hamilton's mastery of the wet conditions in only his second year in F1.
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One of the fans on the website mentioned why they felt this drive by Hamilton deserved the recognition, saying:
"2008, when Lewis Hamilton made everyone else look like amateurs in the wet. The margin between him and Nick Heidfeld in second place was over a minute when the chequered flag was waved." [via Top Gear]
Hamilton had started the race in fourth, but took the lead of the race into the first corner after an incredible push off the line. Pole sitter and Hamilton's teammate, Heikki Kovalainen, retook the lead on the exit of the corner, but the Briton was past him by lap 5, after which there was no looking back.
At the end of the race, only the podium sitters, Nick Heidfeld (2nd) and Rubens Barrichello (3rd) finished on the same lap as Hamilton, that too over a minute behind. This win, in what was Hamilton's sophomore year in F1, showed fans his true potential and a sign of what was to come in the future.
Lewis Hamilton went on to win his first F1 world championship in 2008
Lewis Hamilton went on to become the youngest ever F1 world champion, at the time, in the 2008 season. The McLaren driver did this in the most dramatic fashion, after overtaking Timo Glock on the final corner of the final lap of the season at Interlagos, to claim fifth place, and the title with it by 1 point.
The 2008 F1 season provided fans with one of the most intense title fights in the sport's history, and a climax to match it. As previously mentioned, Hamilton snatched the title away from Ferrari's Felipe Massa on the last lap of the last race of the season, while the Prancing Horses claimed their most recent constructors' title.
The season also involved the sport's first ever night race at the Singapore GP, which today is only remembered for the infamous 'crashgate' incident. The season is still not completely sealed off as well, as Felipe Massa is presently suing the FIA for over $80 million in damages, along with seeking an official acknowledgment that he would have been the rightful 2008 world champion if the governing body had not violated its own regulations.
