Max Verstappen is on his way to becoming a 3X world champion. The Dutchman’s dominance this year has been unparalleled. Along this journey toward his 3rd title, Max Verstappen has broken many records. But so did Lewis Hamilton. But it wasn’t the same for Hamilton as it was for Verstappen while growing up. As Max Verstappen exploited his hereditary privilege by throwing tantrums, Lewis Hamilton had to make a $1200 sacrifice to make the F1 dream come true. But what’s the connection between the tantrum and the sacrifice?

The F1 paths for drivers are significantly different. While Max Verstappen had his father, a former F1 driver to back up his career, Lewis Hamilton and his father Anthony had to struggle. Hamilton recently revealed a story about his racing helmet from his karting days. The Hamilton family wasn’t very well off and hence when it came to getting a Christmas gift, Hamilton asked for a helmet. In order to get the helmet, Hamilton had to sacrifice the PlayStation (which is worth $1200 in the present day) that his family got him. They returned the PlayStation and got the now 7X champion a new helmet. 

However, Verstappen on the other hand threw tantrums and exploited his hereditary benefits. Having Jos Verstappen as a father did make it easier in some ways. A former F1 driver recently revealed how the young Dutchman made a fuss out of it when he would lose a game while playing the PlayStation. Giedo van der Garde however, also revealed that this tantrum and aggression pointed toward a passion for racing. 

During the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 podcast, Giedo van der Garde said, “I lived more or less half at his place in Belgium. Max at that time was 3-4 years old. I was sleeping in Max’s bed. Max would sleep with Jos. And in the evening we would play Playstation with Max because he was still young. He was losing, he would try to throw the controller away. He was angry. He was already very passionate about racing. We saw, his dad and me, going to the go kart. He even went to some races.”

While Lewis Hamilton had to sacrifice his PlayStation to continue racing, Max Verstappen’s passion for racing began because of the PlayStation itself. Two very accomplished drivers, yet racing careers that are world apart.

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Lewis Hamilton on the struggle to reach the pinnacle of motorsports

The road to F1 for Lewis Hamilton wasn’t easy. Not only did Hamilton not have the hereditary benefits that Verstappen had, but was also black. Ever since coming to F1, Hamilton has openly talked about the diversification of the F1 grid. Back in 2020, Hamilton revealed how his father had to work 4 jobs and how his whole family had to sacrifice for Hamilton’s racing dream to become a reality.

Lewis Hamilton posted a picture with his dad on Instagram with the caption, “We started with nothing, he had 4 jobs to keep me racing at one time and I slept on the couch. We dreamt of doing something, something so far out of reach, becoming an F1 driver. For a family with no money, we may have looked and sounded crazy. People would laugh at us, call us names, joke about us but we kept our heads down. We did our fighting with actions on track.” 

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What do you think about the contrast between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton’s career while growing up?

WATCH THIS STORY | Lewis Hamilton on various talk shows