Lewis Hamilton is a superstar of F1 and is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable drivers globally since the racing days of motorsports icon Michael Schumacher. Having started the 2020 campaign brilliantly, even winning the British GP with a completely decimated tire, there's little question about his consistent talent.

Although he may have become a more controversial and outspoken figure in recent months due to his unconditional support of the Black Lives Matter movement, something that a lot of elite sports leagues and clubs are distancing themselves from, he still remains very popular. He is constantly in the running for BBC's sports personality of the year.

He is undoubtedly a great driver, with some of his achievements beginning to match and even eclipse the greats of the sport, but does he have the credentials to call himself one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time?

The Statistics

In his 14-year career, which can be broken down here, the 35-year-old has been on the podium 156 out of a possible 256 times (August 2020), coming first in 88 of those finishes. Unbelievably, he has only failed to win 4 of the 92 races he started on pole, making him one the greatest leading drivers in history. In fact, that statistic of 92 pole positions is the record, and he also holds the record for most career points of an F1 driver with 3563 at the time of writing, most grand slams in a season with 3, and the most points in a single season with 413.

The only major records he's yet to beat is the total number of world championship titles, where he currently sits in second with 6, one away from Schumacher's legendary 7. His total race wins of 88 also puts him second on that statistic too, but he's only three wins away from Schumacher's record and has the momentum to surpass that in the 2020 season. He's still a driver very much in his prime and has the opportunity to eclipse those records sooner rather than later.

Who Else If Not Him?

A few contenders could claim the throne of greatest driver of all time, all of which are immortalized in their own Formula 1 poster by GOAT Prints, and all have impressive statistics that gives them credibility to make that claim. Obviously, there's Schumacher, who still clings onto what many perceive to be the most important metrics, titles and race wins, but there's also the icon Ayrton Senna, who consistently appears in the top ten of across all metrics.

In terms of overall win percentage, Juan Manuel Fangio was dominant in the '50s, boasting an impressive 46.15 win percentage. If it wasn't him winning in that era, it was most likely the Italian Alberto Ascari, who has a 39.39% win ratio. However, those two drivers have only entered a total of 85 races combined, while Hamilton has 256 races under his belt and still has a 34.38-win percentage, which is the third-best overall (as of August 2020).

In terms of contemporary divers, there are a few current drivers who deserve their place in the conversation about "The Greatest of All Time". One being Sebastian Vettel, who has the record of most consecutive F1 wins when he dominated the 2013 season with 9. The other is Max Verstappen, who is the youngest person ever to win a Grand Prix when he was just 18 years old, winning the Spanish Grand Prix in 2016. Being just over 22-years-old now, in 2020, he has 9 total Grand Prix victories, and although his career is still in its infancy, he has the potential to become an all-time great. However, Hamilton still outclasses them in a multitude of metrics and records.