Red Bull's latest prodigy picks Lewis Hamilton as his motorsport hero

Red Bull junior prodigy Arvid Lindblad named seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton as his motorsport hero. In a rapid-fire round with Autosport, the 17-year-old made his pick.

Lindblad received an F1 super license at the age of 17. Despite the age eligibility to compete in Formula 1 being 18 years, the FIA made an exception for Lindblad since he has proved himself as a mature racing driver through his recent performances in junior series.

Despite being a part of Red Bull's junior academy, Lindblad's motorsport hero is not Max Verstappen.

"Who is your motorsport hero?" Autosport asked Arvid in a rapid-fire round.

"Lewis Hamilton," Lindblad replied.

Moreover, when further asked to pick a celebrity who he would like to team up with, the 17-year-old said:

"Max [Verstappen]."

Interestingly, while Lewis Hamilton may be his motorsport idol, Arvid Lindblad is viewed as the future of Red Bull. The team filed an application for his super license despite him not being 18 years old.

The early request is viewed by many as an indication of Red Bull's future plans with Lindblad. Verstappen is facing a race ban threat as his penalty point accumulation has reached 11. One more point could trigger a race ban. Hence, under such circumstances, Red Bull might look to give Lindblad an opportunity in the RB21 now that he has a license to compete in Formula 1.

Arvid Lindblad first impressed critics by finishing P4 in the F3 series at the age of 16. Moreover, this year, he has moved into F2 and became the youngest driver to win an F2 feature race after he finished P1 in Barcelona.

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When Arvid Lindblad used Lewis Hamilton's tactic with Lando Norris

Formula 2 Championship - Round 6 Barcelona - Feature Race - Source: Getty

At just 10 years old, Lewis Hamilton met former McLaren boss Ron Dennis for the first time and made a bold promise to drive one of his cars in the future. He fulfilled that promise when the Brit made his Formula 1 debut with McLaren in 2007.

Meanwhile, Hamilton's story inspired Arvid Lindblad as he used the same tactic with McLaren driver Lando Norris. In 2017, the junior driver met Norris and told him they would meet again in F1 in a few years as competitors.

On the Inside Line podcast, Lindblad said (via Express.co.uk):

“I remember the story of [Lewis] Hamilton when he saw Ron Dennis for the first time and said, ‘I’ll drive one of your cars one day,’ and I just thought, ‘Why not? I’ll just tell him [Lando Norris] I’ll be driving against him in a few years' time’. So it was really just a spur-of-the-moment thing, and I just said it with full confidence.”

Though Arvid Lindblad has received an F1 super license, he is yet to receive a seat on the grid for the upcoming season.