Lewis Hamilton has established himself as a legend in Formula 1. The British driver entered the sport with McLaren and matched two-time world champion Fernando Alonso as his teammate. The Woking-based team under Ron Dennis‘ leadership funded Hamilton’s junior career before giving him a full-time seat in 2007. However, at one point, the seven-time world champion was close to shifting to a rival camp.
In 2004, tensions began to surface between Hamilton’s family and McLaren. Lewis Hamilton’s father Anthony Hamilton was keen on getting his son a drive in GP2 for the following season. However, the Ron Dennis-led wanted to keep the Briton in Formula 3 Euro Series for another year. Martin Whitmarsh, who went on to become the CEO at McLaren even tore Hamilton’s contract.
Williams co-founder Patrick Head recalled that the Hamilton family had called him after the incident. The British driver was willing to sign with the Grove-based team. Frank Williams then approached BMW who was the works partner of the team. Williams urged the then-BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen to support Lewis Hamilton’s move to GP2.
They [Hamiltons] rang up and said 'Can we come and see you?’ And they came in and said 'Ron Dennis has dropped us. We were with BMW at the time and I think Frank [Williams] rang Mario Theissen [BMW Motorsport Director] and said 'Look, this guy looks as if he could be pretty good and he has come to us saying can we help him?' Patrick Head said as reported by RacingNews365
Unfortunately, the German carmaker was not interested in funding Hamilton’s junior career. Head claimed that Frank Williams was annoyed by BMW’s decision as he lost out on signing an exciting talent. Certainly, things would’ve been drastically different for Lewis Hamilton if this deal had gone through.
And I think Mario said they weren't prepared to provide any support and we weren't in a position financially where we could finance his racing. So much to Frank's annoyance, he could have had Lewis in a WilliamsLewis Hamilton would not have won 2008 F1 title with Williams
Hamilton decided to abide by McLaren’s decision for 2005 and stayed with the Woking-based team. Ultimately, the British driver made his F1 debut in 2007 and came close to winning the world title in his rookie season. Nevertheless, the 39-year-old emerged victorious in the final lap of the 2008 championship to clinch his maiden title.
On the other hand, Williams was in a decline after BMW switched to the Sauber F1 team. Frank Williams and Patrick Head were struggling to keep up with rivals due to a loss of major sponsors and engine supplier. So much so, that the Grove-based team went into a complete downfall in the next decade.
Certainly, Lewis Hamilton had fate on his side almost two decades ago when BMW decided against supporting the British driver. The 39-year-old has become one of the most successful drivers in F1 history over the years. Fans would be looking forward to seeing Hamilton try to fight for wins in 2024.
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