F1 champion belittles Lewis Hamilton success

Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari gear — Photo: © IMAGO

Formula 1

F1 champion belittles Lewis Hamilton success - 'Even Bottas could have won'

Lewis Hamilton's success in F1 has been questioned

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Monday 18 August 2025 18:00

Lewis Hamilton has had his seven world titles in F1 called into question by fellow champion Jacques Villeneuve.

The Canadian made an appearance on The Red Flags podcast, where he was asked by the hosts to rank F1's champions over the past 75 years in a head-to-head format.

When Villeneuve was asked to choose between Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, he named the Spaniard, who has only earned two titles to the Brit's seven.

Article continues under video

“I will put Alonso. Hamilton has too many downs. Even though he has got all of the championships, it's not the quantity of championships,” Villeneuve said.

“If you look at every season there’s always been two, three, four races where he was completely disappearing and then suddenly he woke up again and started winning again.

"You can see it now. It's a big shock to him that he actually has to fight as hard as he did in his first and second season.”

Hamilton ranks low on Villneuve's F1 champions list

Villeneuve continued to rank F1’s champions, with Alonso making it into his final alongside Mario Andretti.

However, it was the American who was named the best driver according to Villeneuve, with the 1978 title holder triumphing over his fellow champions.

Andretti’s success does not just lie in F1, with Villeneuve also lauding his talents in IndyCar and endurance racing, describing him as the most complete driver.

The motorsport legend is a four-time IndyCar champion, and also a Indianapolis 500 winner, with endurance racing victories at Daytona and Sebring.

NASCAR Lewis Hamilton Formula 1 Fernando Alonso Jacques Villeneuve Mario Andretti