5 F1 drivers feat. Lewis Hamilton who never fought for a title again after a championship heartbreak

Lewis Hamilton's last-lap defeat in the 2021 F1 championship battle is one of the more controversial and heartbreaking moments of the sport. But it's not the only one, as the sport has been filled with so many of these moments where a title fight came down to the last race and ended in heartbreak for someone.

What is arguably an even more melancholic recurrence is what happens next, where that particular driver never gets the opportunity to redeem himself. The sport has had quite a few moments where a driver has suffered a heartbreak in the championship battle, but never had the opportunity to ever fight for a title again. In this, we'll take a look at 5 of these drivers who fit this criteria.

#1 Lewis Hamilton

Well, the first name is obviously Lewis Hamilton, as he is the latest to join this list. The 7x F1 champion has fought for multiple titles throughout his career. The driver's first-ever season was an attempt at a title, nonetheless, and even that one ended with him losing the championship. The latest one, however, is where it appears that this might be it.

In 2021, Lewis Hamilton was involved in an epic back-and-forth title battle with Max Verstappen. The duo went at each other like two heavyweight boxers trading blows at every given opportunity. Unfortunately, it all ended in heartbreak on the last lap of the last race of the season. The controversial call by the race director, coupled with Verstappen pulling off a stunning last-lap overtake, meant that the year ended in heartbreak.

Since then, Lewis Hamilton has yet to fight for a title. While his many might not like hearing it, he might be closer to the end of his career performance-wise, as his teammate has the edge over him. It might not come as a surprise if the 7x F1 champion doesn't fight for a title ever again.

#2 Fernando Alonso

Just like Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso's last title battle came down to the last race and ended in heartbreak. The Spaniard drove out of his skin in 2012 and continued to be a force at Ferrari, and he dragged the car to the last race of the season in a championship battle with Sebastian Vettel.

In the end, it all came down to the last race of the season, and the German did just enough to secure the title. The short clip of Alonso just looking shocked into the camera after the kind of season he had is imprinted in the F1 folklore. It's been 13 years since that title battle, and the Spaniard has not been in a championship battle since then. Maybe 2026 shows something else but there is a high likelihood that Alonso's last F1 title battle was a last race heartbreak.

#3 Felipe Massa

The 2008 F1 season was the year when Felipe Massa's career peaked. The Brazilian was picked up by Ferrari as someone who was going to be an able deputy of whoever is the lead within the team. He did the role admirably in 2006 and 2007, but in 2008, it was his year. With Kimi Raikkonen struggling to string things together, it came down to Massa to put together a challenge against Lewis Hamilton.

This was exactly what he did, and it all came down to the last lap of the last race of the season, where Massa crossed the finish line as a champion only to see Lewis Hamilton overtake Timo Glock and clinch the title by one point. After 2008, the Brazilian's career fell flat significantly, and he could never come close to the lofty heights of 2008.

#4 Mark Webber

So many people forget the headlines going into the 2010 championship finale, as it was not about Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. In fact, the German was third in the championship heading into the final race of the season, and alongside Lewis Hamilton, he was one of the four drivers who could win the title.

Heading into the final race of the season, the lead driver who was waving the Red Bull flag was none other than Mark Webber. The Australian was second in the championship behind Fernando Alonso. As we all know by now, Vettel would win the race and clinch the title from Alonso, but it would be the last time Webber ever fought for the title.

This was the moment where the genius of Sebastian Vettel just took off, and Mark Webber was always in the rearview mirror until he retired in 2013.

#5 Eddie Irvine

There aren't many drivers in F1 history who could claim to have maximized their talent in the best way possible. Eddie Irvine is one of them, as the Irishman was brought to Ferrari as Michael Schumacher's supporting cast. His role was to bring in whatever points he can in the car and help the lead driver in every way possible.

All of this was fine until 1999, when Ferrari finally got its act together and built a brilliant car that could fight for the title. At the same time, Michael Schumacher had been injured mid-season and was more or less done for the season. This meant that it was going to be a season where Ferrari was going to back Eddie Irvine in a championship fight against Mika Hakkinen. In the end, the Irishman lost the title by just one point.

With that, however, came an end to the peak of his career, as he would never reach those heights ever again.