Lewis Hamilton 'waiting for his passport' in citizenship update ahead of Brazilian GP

Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton has provided an update on his status as an honorary Brazilian citizen ahead of his first race in Sao Paulo with Ferrari.

Since making his debut in the sport in 2007, the F1 legend has experienced the extreme highs and lows of Interlagos, but his deep admiration for Ayrton Senna and subsequent affection for Brazil has earned him the respect of the local fans.

In 2022, Hamilton was made an honorary citizen of Brazil after defying the odds at the race in 2021 to take a commanding victory with Mercedes. Upon winning the grand prix, Hamilton chose to proudly represent Senna's home country by waving the Brazilian flag on the top step of the podium, going on to recall the moment as his 'probably the most special race of my career'.

After the legendary moment where Hamilton replicated his icon, the Brazilian National Congress decided that Hamilton had clearly demonstrated a meaningful connection with the country, and that the Brazilian fans also reciprocated that connection to Hamilton.

As such, he was granted the symbolic honour of citizenship, but is not legally entitled to the rights and privileges of an actual citizenship, such as a passport.

Speaking ahead of this weekend's race which will mark his first Brazilian GP racing for Ferrari, Hamilton reflected on the honour, saying: "I became a citizen. I’ve never heard of that happening, I don’t know of anybody that’s been given a citizenship like that."

The Scuderia star went on to joke: "I’m still waiting for my passport," which was met with plenty of laughter from the crowd.

How has Hamilton fared at the Brazilian GP?

The 40-year-old has competed in 17 Brazilian grands prix across his illustrious career, with the event hosting some of his most memorable career moments of both triumphant and heartbreaking nature.

His first F1 race in front of the Brazilian crowd was the 2007 season finale, which came to a heartbreaking end when the Brit suffered a gearbox issue with his McLaren.

This problem contributed to the then 22-year-old missing out on a championship victory in his rookie season by just a single point.

But after suffering bad luck in Brazil with McLaren, Hamilton's track record with Mercedes produced more positive results, with the now seven-time champion having won the Brazilian GP three times in his career (2016, 2018 and of course, 2021).

The race no longer hosts the season finale but still never fails to disappoint in putting on a show, thanks in part to chaotic conditions out on track.

Qualifying for last year's race was postponed from Saturday until Sunday morning due to the weather conditions, with the forecast currently predicting around a 50 per cent chance of rain for lights out of Saturday's sprint race.

If the weekend's running goes as planned, Hamilton will have two chances to pick up vital points for his new team in front of his unorthodox home crowd with eight up for grabs in the sprint and a maximum of 25 on offer in Sunday's race.

Having still failed to pick up a grand prix podium in red this season, where better to finally finish in the top three with Ferrari than in Brazil?

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