Hamilton's brother lifts lid on gambling addiction
Hamilton's brother lifts lid on gambling addiction
Lewis Hamilton's brother Nicolas has opened up on the gambling addiction that saw him sell a Mercedes C63 gifted by the Formula 1 superstar to settle a tax bill.
Hamilton's half-brother Nicolas, who suffers from cerebral palsy, made history when he became the first disabled driver to race against able-bodied competitors in the British Touring Car Championship in 2015.
READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: How Hamilton beats team-mates revealed by his race engineer
But things began to spiral for him two years later when what seemed like an innocent £2 bet on Arsenal scoring became an ongoing habit that saw him spend days at a time gambling online.
It got to the point that Nicolas, who shares a father with Lewis, had to sell a Mercedes C63 that his elder sibling had gifted him in order to settle a burgeoning tax bill.
READ MORE: Horner announces details of new Red Bull PA's employment terms
Hamilton: 'felt so ashamed'
"I felt so ashamed, using this amazing gift to pay my tax bill," he wrote in his recent book, Now That I Have Your Attention. "It felt like I had practically stolen the money from my brother and I have never forgiven myself for that.
"It destroyed me. I got a real wake-up call. I had no way of going forward because I'd lost everything. I was stuck. I had a balcony at my flat and I was thinking what would I do if I just jumped off it."
Hamilton has long since recovered from the addiction, and scored his first ever BTTC point after finishing 15th in the final race at Brands Hatch in February 2020.
The last of Lewis' joint-record seven F1 world driver's championships was that year, and his most recent race win was in December 2021 at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. He will join Ferrari in 2025, with driver and team hoping for an upturn in fortunes.
READ MORE: Hamilton 'praying' for F1 rival following serious operation
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Newey's desired Ferrari role revealed as Red Bull chief submits RESIGNATION - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Leclerc pictured with new love as post hits 3 MILLION likes
- Yesterday 22:57
Spice Girl 'rock of support' for Geri Horner amid Red Bull 'NIGHTMARE'
- Yesterday 21:57
Newey move to F1 rivals RULED OUT
- Yesterday 20:57
Jos Verstappen hints at Red Bull EXIT for champion son
- Yesterday 19:57
How soon will Newey win the F1 title at his new team?
- Yesterday 18:57
Related news
Hamilton beats Verstappen and host of legends to key title
Former F1 chief suggests Ferrari making WRONG decision in Hamilton-Sainz switch
Hamilton and Wolff centre stage as F1 shuts down New York for new emoji launch
F1 rival makes stunning Hamilton 'best' claim despite poor form
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860