Lewis Hamilton Now Has 100 Formula 1 Poles
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Lewis Hamilton is Formula 1's greatest ever, in no small part due to a resume that now includes at least an equal share of every significant record in the series. He has 97 wins, eclipsing Michael Schumacher for the most all-time in Portugal last season. He has seven championships, tying Schumacher for the most all-time in Turkey last season. And, as of this morning, he has a startling 100 poles, a truly shocking 32 more than second-placed Schumacher in 38 fewer attempts.
The record may just be his signature achievement. When Hamilton earned his first pole, it caught him by surprise. He never seemed to consider himself a qualifying ace, but he scored six in his first season in the sport. In the years that have followed, he has never gone a season without qualifying first. In five of the past six seasons, he qualified on pole ten or more times. Hamilton has long since proven himself to be a truly spectacular qualifier, and his combined strength with Mercedes has been a winning combination in those sessions at a truly incredible pace.
Hamilton excels at everything, but part of what makes his career so spectacular is that he has largely been in a position to simply do what needs to be done. There are races, like Turkey last year or this season's race at Imola, where the cards are not in his favor and he shows his exceptional ability to recover in situations that normally end races, but, for the most part, Hamilton's wins come when he qualifies on pole, has a strong start, and simply runs away from the field.
He has been in a position to execute perfectly since he joined Mercedes AMG F1, and he has done so more often than not. This is what it takes to win more than half of the races run since 2015. 100 pole positions later, it should be no wonder that Hamilton is the favorite in every race he enters.
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