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The Michael Schumacher Trait That Puts Him Above Lewis Hamilton in the Ultimate Goat Debate

Published 12/17/2022, 8:50 AM EST

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Formula 1 has witnessed some exceptional drivers throughout its history. However, hardly anyone compares to the heights that Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher had touched. The seven-time world champions broke almost every record during their conquer of the championships. However, there is a key distinction between the two world championships.

The ruthlessness that Hamilton’s German counterpart possessed was in abundance. Statically speaking, the two are extremely close in terms of race wins, podiums, and pole positions. However, Schumacher’s win-at-all-costs mentality was something that set him apart from Hamilton.

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Most Formula 1 fans and entities will agree Hamilton is one of the cleanest and fair drivers out there. Apart from the McLaren “lie-gate” scandal in 2009, the current Mercedes driver has attracted no controversies. Hamilton is a hungry winning machine, but he’s not known to test the rules to get an advantage.

However, Schumacher is more like Hamilton’s current main-rival Max Verstappen. Schumacher showcased his ruthlessness in the garage as well. Former teammate, Rubens Barrichello, revealed how difficult it was being in Schumacher’s team.

“If it was run straight, just the same strategy for everyone I might have won at least one championship, at least one. Eventually, I felt that [it was Schumacher’s team],” he admitted.

Having Surpassed the Only Criteria to Crown Michael Schumacher F1 GOAT, Confident Lewis Hamilton Reignites the Ultimate Debate

Both Hamilton and Schumacher were the focal point in their team, but the latter used that to his advantage better.

However, this is the distinction F1 entities keep between the two during comparisons.

The late Murray Walker believed Lewis Hamilton was better than Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna

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Not just Michael Schumacher, the late broadcaster, also believed Hamilton is a better driver than his idol, Ayrton Senna. Why? Because of his code of conduct.

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When asked who’s the best driver according to him, Walker said, “But he’s also in my opinion, and this is very contentious indeed, better than either Schumacher or Senna because both of them, Schumacher and Senna, adopted at various times in their career highly debatable driving tactics. And Lewis Hamilton has never been anything like that.”

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WATCH THIS STORY: Lewis Hamilton Breaks Michael Schumacher’s F1 Record in Bahrain

Racing beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, so opinions might change on the GOAT debate. However, most can agree on Hamilton’s clean driving while taking nothing away from Michael Schumacher.

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Written by:

Mahim Suhalka

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Mahim Suhalka is an F1 Author at EssentiallySports. This Sports Management post-graduate is an ardent supporter of the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team and their lead driver, Lewis Hamilton. The fact that Lewis dominated one of the most expensive sports in the world for all these years, despite his humble beginnings, has been a huge inspiration for Mahim and has made him a tenured fan of the competitive sport itself.
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Edited by:

Varunkumaar Chelladurai