Lewis Hamilton currently “the only one above a team” in status as per former F1 boss

Seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has been showered with massive praise by the ex-Haas team principal, Guenther Steiner. The latter did not hesitate to deem Hamilton as 'above a team' in terms of status.

Hamilton has been making his trade in the pinnacle of motorsport since 2007. He has broken several records over the years and has pretty much become synonymous with the sport.

For the 2025 season, Hamilton has joined the iconic Ferrari Formula 1 team, but despite this, Guenther Steiner felt that he was bigger than the Italian manufacturer. In line with this, the latter said:

"I think in F1, the only one above a team is Lewis Hamilton. His presence, his status. It’s very big. Outside of the sport as well. It’s same in football, you’re big in the sport, but then when you get big outside, you’re bigger than the actual team. "I think in Formula 1, the only one who can claim that is Lewis at the moment. I think we see it now with Lewis and Ferrari, they are two huge brands together, and it's almost, sometimes, a conflict. Who is bigger, Ferrari or Lewis?"

Lewis Hamilton has a huge fan following all over the globe. He has over 40 million followers on Instagram, and the numbers are big on his other social media handles as well.

Lewis Hamilton had an 'unbelievably tricky' outing in 2025 British GP

While Lewis Hamilton has been deemed bigger than a team by Guenther Steiner, the former has not had the best of times in the ongoing 2025 Formula 1 season. The campaign is 12 rounds down, and Hamilton has yet to score at least a podium finish in a full-fledged Grand Prix.

In Round 12, the British Grand Prix, Hamilton just missed out on the podium with a fourth place finish, but despite this, he deemed his SF-25 'unbelievably tricky' in the wet conditions. He added, via BBC:

"The car was unbelievably tricky to drive. I think ultimately I learned a lot today, there's lots to take from the day. It's only my second time driving in the wet in this car. I can't even express to you how hard it is. It's not a car that likes those conditions."

After the first 12 rounds, Lewis Hamilton finds himself in sixth place in the Drivers' standings with 103 points. His Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc is in fifth, having secured 119 points with four podium finishes.

Taking into consideration that the Brit secured a P4 in the British GP, he would eye a top-three finish in the upcoming race weekend at the Spa-Francorchamps Racing Circuit. Interestingly, last year's race at the circuit was won by Hamilton while driving for the Mercedes F1 team.

Edited by Hitesh Nigam