F1 Rivalries: Lewis Hamilton’s Greatest Rivals in Grand Prix Racing

#2 Nico Rosberg-

Lewis Hamilton - Nico Rosberg cap throwing incident United States GP

Nico Rosberg and Lewis had been karting teammates as youngsters, but by the time that Nico retired, nobody could imagine that these two had remained friends for a long period of their lives. When asked, the 33-year-old did not name the German as one of his fiercest rivals, but competing with the latter gave him two world championships. Lewis even lost one to Nico, right before the German retired.

Mercedes, from 2014-2016, had no immediate rival and their purple patch become a thorn in Lewis and Nico’s friendship. With them both fighting for the world championship, animosity became inevitable. Incidents on track quickly spilled onto their lives off it, with the pre-podium cap throwing at the 2015 United States Grand Prix as proof of the friction between them. By the time the German attained his solo championship in 2016 and retired, the friendship seemed to have become unrepairable.

Video Nico throwing the cap