Formula 1 fans have defended Lewis Hamilton after the Mercedes star faced a bizarre backlash for paying tribute to Michael Schumacher.
Seven-time world champions Hamilton and Schumacher hold the top two spots on talkSPORT’s list of the top ten greatest F1 drivers ever.
The motorsport legends only briefly crossed over on-track, when Ferrari icon Schumacher returned to the grid in 2010 with Mercedes.
The German retired for a second time two years later, which opened the door for Hamilton to head to the Silver Arrows from McLaren.
Over the next decade, the Brit – who now has Schumacher’s son Mick as his reserve driver – won six of his seven drivers’ titles to equal ‘Regenkönig’ (Rain King’s) trophy haul.
Hamilton is now following in Schumi’s footsteps again next season by joining Ferrari in search of an outright record eighth championship.
The 39-year-old is out of the 2024 title race and instead decided to honour the 30th anniversary of Schumacher’s first F1 title victory.
The 105-time Grands Prix winner penned the foreword in the new book, ‘World Championship Cars – Michael Schumacher’.
Hamilton wrote: “Michael is among the legends in our sport. When you grow up with passion for motorsport, you always look up at specific people, and without doubt Michael was a role model for young drivers.
“His speed, his work morals, his determination and consistency – the length of his career and his top performance can only be admired.”
He added: “When it comes to Michael’s legacy, however, I focus on him as a person rather than a competitor. It’s not about titles or trophies, but about the family that he and [wife] Corinna [Schumacher] created together.
“Their greatness, their humility and their sincerity say much more about Michael’s values than I ever could.”
Schumacher has been absent from the public eye since suffering a life-altering brain injury following a skiing accident in 2013.
The 55-year-old’s inner-circle remains fiercely protective of his privacy and updates on his health and condition have been scarce since.
His family continue to honour his legacy through documentaries and books, such as the most recent release.
However, some of Schumacher’s fans were left upset at Hamilton’s contribution to the latest publication.
One critic remarked: “Why is Hamilton’s face in the same book as Michael Schumacher?”
Another commented: “Why do you have to insult us Michael’s fans with Hamilton’s picture or mention in this book? As [an] eternal Schumacher fan it’s a huge disrespect to me and of many others I am sure.”
The backlash stems from Hamilton’s reputation as F1’s GOAT – a title almost unanimously held by Schumacher at the time of his retirement.
As mentioned, the pair had little overlap inside F1 and the Briton’s continued success has divided, not just supporters, but drivers who have competed against both over who is the best of all time.
As Sebastian Vettel told talkSPORT in April, Hamilton has the statistics having broken Schumacher’s records for most wins (91), pole positions (68), and podium finishes (155), but his German compatriot remains his hero.
Hamilton fans were quickly on the scene to defend him, writing: “All the people in the comments who are so kind to express their disapproval of Lewis, you need to come to terms with reality and really face the music, Hamilton is the greatest driver Formula One has seen.
“This tribute is perfect and suits only from someone who has broken and shared more records with Michael than the years you’ve lived.”
A balanced F1 supporter stated: “In truth, none of us can speak to who Micheal would’ve wanted in this book.
“The only people who can speak on this are his family, and them putting Hamilton in this book is proof that Micheal approves. Show some respect to that, at least.”
