Lewis Hamilton named a shock driver who won just one race during his career when discussing the 'most talented driver' he's raced against.
Having made his Formula One debut racing for McLaren 18 years ago, Hamilton has raced against some of the very best drivers ever to compete in the sport.
The Brit has won everything there is to win in F1, claiming seven drivers' championship titles while facing off with the likes of Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel and, more recently, Max Verstappen.
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However, when asked to pick the the most talented driver he faced on the track, Hamilton snubbed all three men and instead named someone who claimed only one race victory across his entire F1 career.
Instead, the Ferrari driver picked former Polish driver Robert Kubica as his best-ever opponent, despite the fact that he rarely was competing against Hamilton for race wins during their time together on track.
"I've known Robert the longest, we started racing each other in go-karts in 1998 - for me, Robert is one of the most talented drivers that I've competed against," Hamilton claimed in 2019.
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"From the beginning, I already saw the talent that he had."
Kubica made his debut back in 2006 and went on to competed in 99 races, achieving podium finishes in 12 of them.
Just two years later, he achieved his sole race victory at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, as a collision between Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen in the pit lane allowed the BMW Sauber star to secure what would be the only win in his career.
Throughout his career, Kubica was tipped to go on and become one of the best drivers the sport had ever seen, but a tragic accident in 2011 at the Ronde di Ally rally held him back from reaching his full potential.
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The promising young was taking part in the race to improve his driving skills, but was involved in a crash that led to his right forearm becoming partially amputated.
Kubica then spent a considerable amount of time away from the Formula One track as he recovered from injuries and several operations, but made a spectacular return in 2019, to partnering George Russell at Williams.
"I think what's really remarkable is the strength and the determination he's shown to get through the incident he had," Hamilton explained.
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"Not a lot of people can come from those kinds of circumstances and make it back into the sport and deliver against others who don't have the same situation as him."
After just one season with Williams, Kubica was replaced by Nicholas Latifi, but he is still considered by many as one of the most talented drivers the sport has ever seen who could have achieved true greatness if it wasn't for his devastating misfortune.
Topics: Lewis Hamilton, Motorsport, Formula 1
Ben McCrum