This week, Sir Lewis Hamilton became an honorary citizen of Brazil. The move comes after his win at the 2021 San Paulo Grand Prix. He proudly displayed the Brazilian flag in his car after winning, and on the podium. The Brit has stated his love for the country several times and made an emotional Instagram and Twitter post to express his thanks for this honour.
Hamilton and Brazil
Hamilton’s admiration for Brazil dates to the days of Ayrton Senna, one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time who came from Brazil. Senna won three Drivers Championships during his F1 career and raced for Toleman, Lotus, McLaren, and Williams. The Brazilian tragically died in a racing accident at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Senna was leading the race, but after leading the racing line at 191mph, he drove straight into the concrete retaining wall at 145mph. Hamilton was just nine years old when this happened. He’s since gone on to name Senna as his idol in F1.
Hamilton recreated Senna’s iconic 1991 flag wave at the Brazilian GP last year. It was this moment that ignited the idea to make him an honorary citizen of Brazil. Brazilian Congressman Andre Figueiredo introduced a bill to make Hamilton an honorary citizen. Hamilton’s celebration of Brazil has been very special for those that live there, and Hamilton’s love for the country means a lot to the citizens.
Another Accolade
Footballing legend Pelé congratulated the 7x World Champion on the honour, referring to him as a ‘countryman’. This honour is amongst the already extensive list of accolades achieved by Hamilton on-and-off the track. He was recently knighted by Prince Charles and has an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Engineering Academy. He’s also set to produce a brand new upcoming F1 film. It’s yet another significant achievement for Hamilton in what has been a challenging year on track for him.
