Lewis Hamilton has reignited his rivalry with old F1 foe Fernando Alonso with a cheeky quip about the Aston Martin driver’s podium record.
Hamilton and Alonso clashed during an explosive season as McLaren team-mates in 2007, which ended with the latter parting company with the team after just one season of a three-year contract.
The pair stand as two of the most legendary drivers in F1 history, with Hamilton winning a joint-record seven World Championships, as well as becoming the first man to surpass 100 race wins and pole positions, and Alonso claiming two consecutive titles across 2005/06.
Although a respect has developed between the pair in the years since, Alonso and Hamilton have rarely missed an opportunity to take aim at each other in recent times.
Following a collision with Hamilton on the opening lap of the 2022 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, Alonso described the Mercedes driver as an “idiot” over team radio before claiming “this guy only knows how to drive when starting first.”
Months later, Alonso claimed that Hamilton’s World Championships were of “less value” due to the dominant fashion in which they were won.
Hamilton responded by posting an image of the pair on the podium at Indianapolis 2007, with Hamilton resting his hand on a frustrated Alonso’s shoulder having prevailed in a head-to-head fight between them.
And Hamilton has issued a new not-so subtle dig in Alonso’s direction while appearing in a game on F1’s official YouTube channel.
In a 13-minute clip, the F1 2024 drivers were shown a series of doctored images and challenged to spot the mistake in each one, one of which included a photograph of Alonso celebrating with a trophy in his hand on the podium at the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
Asked to pinpoint “what’s wrong” with the image, Hamilton replies: “Just him standing on the podium.”
Hamilton soon honed in on the correct answer, with the award in Alonso’s grasp switched to the British Grand Prix winners’ trophy.
The Mercedes driver was making reference to Alonso’s relative lack of success during the second half of his career, with the 43-year-old still without a victory since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix.
Alonso failed to finish on the podium for four full seasons between 2015-18, forcing the veteran to take a two-year sabbatical from F1 before returning at the beginning of 2021.
He has appeared on the podium a total of nine times since his comeback with the Alpine (one) and Aston Martin (eight) teams.
Hamilton, who collected most of his World titles during Alonso’s barren years, stood as the only driver in F1 history to win at least one race in every season since his debut until 2022.
One winless campaign followed another in 2023, but Hamilton ended a 945-day streak without a win at his home race at Silverstone in July, following that up with a record-extending 105th victory at last month’s Belgian Grand Prix.
Hamilton announced earlier this year that he will join Ferrari on a multi-year contract from F1 2025.
Alonso previously spent five seasons with the Scuderia between 2010-2014, claiming 11 of his 32 career wins but falling narrowly short of being crowned World Champion in 2010 and 2012.
