The winless drivers who could be Hamilton’s heirs to F1’s crown

Eventually, Lewis Hamilton's Formula 1 career will come to a close. Although Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc have challenged, three drivers who are yet to score a victory could inherit the world champion's place at the pinnacle in future seasons...

As Lewis Hamilton lined up on the grid for the 2007 Australian Grand Prix, baby-faced and ready to shake up the Formula 1 world, the battle to be the heir to the then-retired Michael Schumacher was about to step up a gear.

Hamilton has been essentially ever-present at the front of the F1 pack since his debut, seeing off an impressive roster of names in title fights. Since the start of the V6-hybrid era, Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso (the driver who ended Schumacher's reign), Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Valtteri Bottas, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc have all aimed to take the fight to Hamilton, yet none of them has been able to get close to his level of performance.

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Author Luke Smith

Luke Smith is Autosport’s Formula 1 reporter. Luke has been working in F1 as a journalist since 2013, initially alongside a History degree at University College London. Luke served as the lead F1 writer at American broadcaster NBC Sports from 2013-17 before spending two years as the F1 Editor for Crash.net. Luke joined Autosport for the 2020 season.

Luke is also a contributor to The New York Times for its F1 special reports, and has previously worked with Al Jazeera and CNBC, as well as hosting FIA press conferences. Outside of F1, Luke is a fan of sports and music, with an ever-growing vinyl collection, and has being bitten by the running bug in recent years. He also runs a surprisingly popular blog reviewing the often-terrible media centre coffee from his F1 travels.