How Lewis Hamilton Saved Formula 1

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⏱ Timestamps
00:00 The Athlete Billionaire Club
01:00 The Business of Hamilton - Career Earnings
02:00 Brand Sponsorships
04:08 Business Ventures & Investments
06:27 The Future
07:08 Learn Classical Mechanics with Brilliant.org
🎬 About
Athletic Interest is a video essay series that investigates business stories from the world of sports.
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📚 Sources
[1] Why Is Lewis Hamilton Nicknamed the Billion Dollar Man? (Essentially Sports) www.essentiallysports.com/f1-...
[2] Billion Dollar Ballers (Forbes) www.forbes.com/sites/mattcrai...
[3] Challenger, champion, change-maker The real Lewis Hamilton story (BBC) www.bbc.co.uk/sport/extra/c1n...
[4] Lewis Hamilton Becomes F1's Highest Paid Driver (Forbes) www.forbes.com/sites/csylt/20...
[5] Lewis Hamilton’s $681m payday revealed as champion chases retirement cash (Fox Sports) www.foxsports.com.au/motorspo...
[6] Highest Paid Athletes 2022 (Forbes) www.forbes.com/athletes/
[7] ibid
[8] Nike, Jordan Score With Jordan Brand’s Record Haul (FOS) frontofficesports.com/jordan-...
[9] Lewis Hamilton is motorsports' richest driver (Insider) www.insider.com/lewis-hamilto...
[10] Lewis Hamilton is changing Formula 1 forever (WSJ) www.wsj.com/story/lewis-hamil...
[11] + [21] Lewis Hamilton plans to ‘fully focus’ on new production company when he retires (Planet F1) www.planetf1.com/news/lewis-h...
[12] F1 icon Lewis Hamilton has an incredible £13MILLION car collection (The Sun) www.thesun.co.uk/sport/931399...
[13] Hamilton sells his rare Pagani Zonda (Motorsport Week) www.motorsportweek.com/2022/0...
[14] Inside Lewis Hamilton’s $130 Million Real Estate Empire (Essentially Sports) www.essentiallysports.com/f1-...
[15] Leonardo DiCaprio Joins Lewis Hamilton’s Vegan Burger Empire (Bloomberg) www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...
[16] Lewis Hamilton Among Stars Investing In Athletic Greens (FOS) frontofficesports.com/lewis-h...
[17] Lewis Hamilton: How veganism helped the F1 world champion to glory (CNN) edition.cnn.com/2017/11/24/mo...
[18] Team (Game Changers) gamechangersmovie.com/team/
[19] Celebrity-Backed NotCo Brings Its AI-Developed Vegan Chicken to Burger King (Green Queen) www.greenqueen.com.hk/notco-a...
[20] Chelsea takeover: Lewis Hamilton confirms he's joined consortium to buy London club (Sky Sports) www.skysports.com/f1/news/110...
#formula1 #lewishamilton #f1 #athleticinterest
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[@Mart-Man]

I have never heard lewis being called a "billion dollar man" before this video and i have been following lewis career from 2004.

[@enzoking5959]

True. He's been called pretty much the opposite at the start of his career

[@optyfen5276]

Amen to this. Only since moving to Mercedes he started to be the Hamilton we know now.

[@doctajuice]

Probably if you didn't read that one specific article that called him that you wouldn't know about it 😂😂😂😂

[@chiefdenis]

Same, i only know blud as hammer time

[@azodlaramo4249]

That nicknamed sound familiar

[@onnyxmalonzo6572]

Lewis' social media presence combined with being the most accomplished F1 driver so far is something the sport have never seen before nor expected.

[@shaxxs]

Makes me wonder what the toxic people would say about his ventures and presence without that astonishing records he hold, sentiment like "stick to driving", etc.

[@skp8748]

​@@shaxxs I really don't like bringing identity into things but for Lewis racism has been constantly disguised as criticism. He was EXEMPLARY in dealing with it. He never allowed it to make him bitter or affect his performance. Every interview, public interaction and social engagement he's carried himself professionally and as an ACTUAL role model. He's never been edgy or polarising in fact he's consistently promoted positivity. From him championing women, supporting disabled kids and even him condemning bullying he's always been a stalwart ambassador of individual liberty. Whilst personally veganism, LGBT, feminism ect ect might be a gripe because of political/cultural landscape which encourages society and pontificating celebs to chastise the public to deify their views. Lewis has been a breath of fresh air which I think is from the authenticity in his positions as well as his polite means of communication. You can see this in how he dealt with Verstappens father, Bernie Ecclestone Nelson Piquet, Jensen button and the British media. Only time I felt he overstepped and was being moronically ideological was regarding him Vs Saudi Arabia.

[@kingkhaya1115]

Facts 🎉🎉🎉

[@laurentmichel6033]

Sadly

[@omeee]

@@skp8748 I have never seen racism against Lewis. Lewis was more dangerous when he was young than Max. Young people might not remember this, I do. There were many people sure that he will kill someone, his driving was extremely dangerous and F1 were not as safe as todays. I also remember an interview from Niki Lauda in which he said that. Lewis was sympathic when he was together with Scherzinger. After their break up I dislike his personality. There is for many year now nothing authentic about him. Lewis is extremely talented and his looks are 10/10. This racism card was brought up by him only... Remember Mclaren where everyone was basically white signed him extremely young. There were a ton of other talented people also available....

[@ibrahimgultekin1366]

This channel truly is... one of those channels that deserves more subscribers.

[@rickharder]

this guy spits only facts right here👆

[@friction5001]

Fr

[@Fabbyyy]

They are doing pretty good. Growing steady video by video. No need to rush success

[@nima.tajdolat]

One day it will be in the millions, one day

[@v.demonaco3718]

A matter of time

[@sj8306]

One of the first sportsman I admired growing up back in his earlier days. Humble beginnings

[@guts_on_edge4859]

but a douchebag in real life

[@economicsofentertainment]

Hamilton is also extremely relatable, people like him from all walks of life. Great Vid!

[@marufhasan60]

A great sportsman whom I've admired since I started watching F1 in 2007. What a splash he made with his debut. And I'm so happy to see him shine thorough the years with consistent performance and dedication. A true sportsman. He is one the greatest sportsman and my GOAT in F1. I'd love to see him win his 8th championship this year.

[@evoniics9572]

Is he really so good? My problem with F1 is that I feel that it is more important wich car you drive compared to you own skills.

[@sanidhyakumar5816]

sebsetian the goat

[@SSJWAnimation]

@@evoniics9572you can have the best car ever and yea it would help but you need to be able to extract everything out of it. If not you’re unlikely to win a title unless there is literally no competition. As in your teammate doesn’t even turn up. Plus the best way to see how good a driver is to watch wet races. A good example of Lewis’ pure ability would be Silverstone 2008. One of the best drives I’ve ever seen.

[@thabiledwaba9763]

Literally the reason i feel in love with F1. Sir Lewis

[@danyelgunner]

Same

[@bexjr]

Same, he is truely "King Lewis" what I heard much more than "a billion dollar man" witch i never heard ever.

[@jeffreyonemu1426]

Love Athletic Interest, love Lewis Hamilton even more. This is literally the perfect video.

[@nerd26373]

This is fascinating to learn more in detail. Keep up the good work.

[@Chrisc0Disc0]

This is my first time I have seen a video from this channel, but I can say that I am truly impressed. From the AI images in the introduction to the editing, I was completely blown away. Congratulations, you just earned yourself a new subscriber. I never like or share videos either, but this one is one for the books. 💯

[@seemymobot4987]

Enjoy the ride 😎

[@rocket009able]

Would love a breakdown on how the other athletes on the billion dollar list got to their status as well!

[@Kushonthebush]

Athletic intrest is my fav channel for biz case studies for sports and as always very well research video and with every video the quality of production is improving kudos to you

[@cristobalmoya338]

Every video of this channel is an absolute banger, so happy it’s been growing and getting the attention it deserves

[@vincentcollins1017]

he's the man that made me fall in love with Formula 1

[@AthleticInterest]

That's a pretty cool legacy 🙂

[@bram1nabuurs471]

Max Verstappen did that for me, the new gen!

[@workspilot.]

Keep up the good work!

[@aAlyssN]

"...and for some reason, a standard mini" That killed me

[@dianamaioru497]

I heard Sir Lewis likes driving it around because nobody would expect to find him in one! (Plus it's a fun car to drive.)

[@arjuhama]

He did say some years ago that he drives around his hometown Stevenage in his Mini because it doesn't draw that much attention.

[@djdablu8818]

Hamilton also became the “villain” of this age of f1 to make f1 spicy and popular ! Even tho he is the one who have struggled the most in this sport and have achieved everything this sport had to offer .. people love to see a hero fall i guess

[@zazoulies3639]

what are you talking about man , he has never had the villain image of the sports. I follow him since his gp2 career and he has always been loved by the media and mostly never has had the villain image because he never said controversial things against others racers that could make him seen as the bad guy. im sorry but your comment is nonsense the true villain were Vettel before Ferrari , verstappen and Alonso sometimes with his spicy declaration

[@firstname6165]

So how did he save F1?

[@hlumelomrali4081]

You didn’t do too well in school ,did you?

[@zhen86]

He did not, without Lewis, fans will still watch. Kimi is very popular.

[@EduSaav]

i hate how F1 Fans try to discredit this man in his own Sport... its no surprise Hamilton is the biggest name in F1, calling out its gov. body on many issues speaking up were everybody else just stay silent. Its a shame they betrayed him in 2021 i just hope he gets his 8th soon and once again silence the haters.

[@justgary2471]

Haters gonna hate. They just jealous of his success. I am a Redbull fan but I have so much respect for Hamilton. It takes an absolute beast to win 7.

[@SpiceAndSauce]

They don’t hate his abilities, they hate the whinging he does sometimes. Also lot of the winning has to do with the car these days. But no doubt about Lewis’ abilities.

[@hfh2933]

@@SiegfriedDerDrachentoter let me just remind you that the footage from Verstappens brasil "braking" attempt has still not been released yet, but the one in Hamilton's cockpit was widely available.

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

@@hfh2933 I remember it took like 3 days for Verstappen onboard to be released to the public afterwards lmao It is what it is man

[@calebgaceru5775]

Its amazing before Drive to Survive. Lewis was literally the main person bringing in new eyes to Formula 1. Give credit where its due.

[@carloskissoondhan9641]

Your genuineness is why I now watch F1. I hope you get your 8th WDC and climax that movie with Brad. Godspeed LH!

[@jannishoeferlin4465]

I love the videos you are making and the visual looks of all the animations. What software are you actually using for those?

[@AthleticInterest]

Adobe After Effects :)

[@marto179]

The editing is impeccable!

[@toadlol5895]

Besides the point of the whole video, but it's actually very impressive how Fernando Alonso is still valued so highly in the sport even at the age that he is,and it's not just because he's a previous world champ, but he's still as good as what he used to be, and I full well believe that he could be fighting for the championship next year, maybe this year if they're lucky enough

[@KS-ep9ij]

Edition is on point! Content is great! It’s nice to not get click baited for once

[@rumapark494]

Schumacher was the most paid F1 driver was he not? He made over a billion dollars according to some sources.

[@wavyharbdul5078]

He didn’t

[@rumapark494]

@@wavyharbdul5078 Forbes said he did, so not sure I trust you more than Forbes or EuroBusiness for that matter.

[@livwake]

Maybe they mean right now

[@f1pro299]

​@@wavyharbdul5078 What do you know about Schumacher

[@wavyharbdul5078]

@@f1pro299 A lot

[@marchukD]

Actually, the title is a bit clickbaity as the video doesn’t focus on how in fact Hamilton saved F1.

[@weeddegree]

Watching him from his first f1 race.. the boys done well. Respect to his dad

[@SkiTiNo]

Amazing video!

[@AthleticInterest]

Thanks, Alessandro! 😀

[@GustavoDias-nj4xx]

Excellent video!

[@AthleticInterest]

Thank you, Gustavo!

[@AhmedSamir-cr7ym]

Five of them born in the 80s what a great generation

[@oliversoininen5543]

Amazing video again. Can you do video about golf and specially about tiger woods

[@AthleticInterest]

Thank you... and thanks for the idea! 😀

[@phumlanindlovu5653]

Your motion graphics have rocketed bro🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@iraklimodebadze8979]

Love this channel and your business wise sports videos. Just wish to upload videos more often 🙏❤

[@AthleticInterest]

Thanks very much 🙂

[@rickharder]

This channel never disappoints!

[@anasshahid224]

Lewis Hamilton is a once in a generation athlete, he’s transcended the sport of Formula 1 and became a household name now 👏👏👏👏

[@TravelGeeq]

This was flipping amazing. Subscribed.

[@AthleticInterest]

Aw, thank you! 😀

[@edgargalindo8587]

Amazing video! I always enjoy the business side of F1!

[@itswais77]

Lewis is the reason why i watch f1 but it’s not just f1, it’s basically the whole of motorsport I love and he’s the reason

[@rodrigosarmentox]

This channel is really good

[@enriquemaravilla5352]

WOW! This video is perfection ALL AROUND. You deserve more Subscribe. To help I just Subscribed, keep it up!

[@AthleticInterest]

Thank you, Enrique! That is very helpful 😉

[@chiuriwandia6743]

Top notch video. Loved it. Make one about Daniel Ricciardo

[@AthleticInterest]

Already did :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/f36weGapoqZlo9k

[@ilyasabdullah6364]

I watch f1 just to see lewis hamilton

[@apnawhite5175]

How may times you wanna change thumbnail. Athletic interest : Yes

[@bexjr]

The new F1 fans will never understand how good Lewis was and is! True GOAT of F1!

[@fortnight5677]

All it takes is to watch a video. This isn't middle-age where you only hear rumours about a legendary person.

[@isi10166]

@@fortnight5677 thank you. New to F1 and I am a big fan of legends like Ayrton, Schumacher, sir Lewis etc. Thanks to KZbin

[@Belligoal.5]

Hazard and me saved burger king

[@philsblogs8527]

MUCH prefer this thumbnail. Good job!

[@thomasphiri2023]

Lewis is so marketable

[@kelvinashie]

It's 2023 and I'm still looking for the voice behind this channel.

[@MENQN]

F1 is Lewis Hamilton and Lewis Hamilton is F1

[@eriknaamot]

You should also make a video about Michael 👏👏 He genuinly is a unique figure of F1 :)

[@elarnoldo1]

Y'all at Athletic Interest always produce intriguing and informative bangers. Thanks for this

[@fredlenfantdupays]

Waouh he's the best formula pilot of this generation and also bankable🎉

[@dimebagdd]

I've read the title, opened the video, disliked it, and closed

[@KM10HM12]

He has been carrying the sport for a very long time.

[@lahmerali7652]

so fantastic ♥️👏👏👏

[@Retro16]

Your voice is so satisfying to hear :)

[@AthleticInterest]

Glad you enjoy it 😁

[@chip0109]

Everytime I watch a video here, the subscribers always seem less. They need more.

[@Kiangroenewald]

One of the best videos ive seen for a while

[@AthleticInterest]

Thanks Kian!

[@andreszambrano5081]

I started following a plant based diet (can’t call myself a vegan because of some slip ups) about a year and a half ago. Coincidentally I started watching F1 at around the same time and when I found out Hamilton is vegan I got very happy. He is truly a humble, amazing person.

[@stevesv7941]

To be very honest with you this video could be wrong. As viewership kept dropping during the dominance of Lewis and it was actually quite boring and all because he had the best car on the grid. People kept complaining about the sport in general. Earlier sure Hamilton was a treat to watch but I feel Drive to survive saved F1 and made it famous. But Hamilton's social work cannot be ignored and for his beliefs.

[@odarigeraldangule]

This is quite interesting, no wonder I love this guy

[@carlachua]

I love this channel

[@Nathaniel_Wu]

It was not his “favorite” Pagani though😂 He said it was terrible to drive.

[@madjoshmotingwa3737]

He back with a another video 😂😂💖

[@janm8973]

04:38 the most iconic standard mini belonging to mr. bean would be my first choice (Y)

[@beanlentil]

the "billion dollar man" must have been a homage to the BBC who made a documentary on him after 2007 season

[@va1korion]

1:57 Here after Lewis to Ferrari $100M contract announcement. There also seems to be an agreement about investments outside F1 salary for about $250M.

[@LordWay]

The standard mini is the one from from british TV show Mr Bean

[@devanman7920]

It's videos like this that make you realise you the ballers really are. Lewis flies under the radar (generally compared to boxers lets say) yet he's a savage.

[@AdrienRaza]

Best channel

[@AthleticInterest]

Thanks mate

[@denizakogul]

Why do you have scene numbers on left?

[@rubikscub3]

GET IN THERE LEWIS!!!!

[@muhammadakmal9693]

In my country, Lewis Hamilton has its own nickname called bang jago

[@Dalidhouib]

I didn't expect bradley beal here 00:47 🤣😅

[@sirseanisrobinson1515]

I'm building a W201 190E Benz doing a motor swap taking out the straight 6 2.6L 4speed and swapping in a AMG 5.9L V12 with a 6 speed tip-tronic transmission so yeah It's getting a paddle shift steering wheel. And I named this Baby Benz after Lewis Hamilton hopefully I can get this done before Lewis retires from F1

[@notaspeck6104]

He almost bought Chelsea?… I don’t know if that would’ve been better or worse 😭

[@enam98]

"Mayweather invests in adults club" That made me laugh 😅

[@9strumental]

still... when someone drives fast on the block we call em Schumacher

[@Bongdyr]

Game changers has since then been heavily debated. they make some crazy claims

[@avidcule]

wtf do you mean by saved? the year's were he dominated was when F1 was at an all-time low.

[@laszloszoke8849]

He was one of the reasons F1 was on the fall tho, his reign with Mercedes made more and more people leave the sport, while Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are the ones who brought it back from it's grave, without the 2021 and 2022 seasons' new faces and greater competitiveness made many people come back and even a lot of new people started watching it in the 2021 or the 2022 season.

[@notaspeck6104]

That’s always the case for dominant drivers though. The same was true before he got there and actually in his rookie year he piqued a lot of internet for being both young and obviously the first driver of colour. Your argument is pretty counterintuitive because now red bull is having the same dominance as Mercedes. In case you missed the memo this is kinda how f1 works.

[@jackpumpkinpatch2119]

He’s the 🐐

[@agreencanna]

This is a bold statement

[@NahianNihan]

What with this bullshit calling DTS revived F1. Most of the F1 fans don't even watch DTS.

[@chaitanyapantula6481]

Changed the thumbnail I see

[@jason9875]

0:19 Wait, was that just an ad or did you really use Midjourney AI to generate that image?

[@AthleticInterest]

No ad! We used Midjourney for that shot but still had to change a lot with Photoshop. But could be fun to play around with more often in future videos.

[@jason9875]

​@@AthleticInterest Very cool to see an application of AI in the "real world"

[@HexlGaming]

4:37 you've truly made it when some of the toys you own are being called a good investment despite you just buying them because you wanted them and because you think they are cool...

[@savasbekdas]

"Landon Norris"

[@muhammadluqmankhan08]

Lewis Hamilton saved Formula 1.. I would like to smoke what you were smoking before writing this title

[@davismotomiya29]

And he is also one of the, if not the most eloquent athlete in the world

[@dripdrip68]

Michael Schumacher was called the first "Billion Dollar Man". You've put so much work into your videoes, but you always have some real bad fails in them, which is impossible if you get infos about athletes.

[@georgythomas8451]

If drive to survive was the reason for f1 revival, a lot of the credit should go to Daniel Riccardo

[@dianamaioru497]

Nah. Lewis Hamilton's episodes produced much more interest and revenue than Daniel Riccardo's. This is confirmed by the Drive To Survive producers themselves!

[@deliaalomia7336]

Se sabe que este hombre es muy inteligente me alegro mucho que sea el que es y cada día llegará más lejos y la Fórmula uno siempre es sabido que el protagonista ahora es Reebul y max es el piloto que le está dando riqueza mañana sera otro el que no analiza la Fórmula uno no entiende pero Hamilton sigue siendo el mejor piloto de todos los tiempo...

[@FaceFish9]

"brought more hollywood" as if that is a good thing for the racing fans..

[@NihinduAngana]

great video as always my friend!! thanks for making more videos on F1 I think Hamilton fan or not u have to agree he is one of the best ever F1 drivers and probably the most influential of them all!!

[@EntropicExergy]

No i do not, i thoroughly disagree.

[@NihinduAngana]

@@EntropicExergy yeah i guess i was in the wrong there actually.. probably Micheal Schumacher is the most influential of them all.. because come to think of it i knew his name years before i got into F1

[@EntropicExergy]

@@NihinduAngana And that is how you identify a true great. Makes you a strong character to admit you were in the wrong, kudos to you.

[@shadxwslash44]

I really admire Lewis' fashion taste, how literally every single one of my classmates hate how he dresses, how controversial, yet modest his style is. "How can he wear that?" - they ask. I'm usually on the more conservative side, but I admire tasteful modernity and change. That is exactly what Lewis is doing with his fashion. I've been trying to pinpoint Lewis' dressing tendencies which cause this outrage in my peers. Colours? Scottish skirt? See-through shirt? I don't know what it is yet, but he does it damn well. The reason I became a fan of him in 2013 wasn't this though. I just saw that silver car with the Petronas-green and the Mercedes-Benz star on its nose.

[@soundscape26]

Brands send him the clothing and he will just wear it... I'm almost sure he doesn't get to keep much of what he's given.

[@pinkertonf_]

Their brains can't handle the drip 🥶 But seriously tho, I see the same phenomenon happening with me. Basically everyone I know sees the way he dresses as outrageous and/or says he is just seeking for attention, while I personally find his outfits the pure definition of fashion - from the colours to the silhouettes. I also admire how it's not just generic hypebeast clothing (like Zhou tends to wear, yet with almost no backlash from the fans) nor Nike basketball shoes: he really puts thought into what he wants to wear and into what "-cores" he wants to explore, and it usually comes out very good-looking on him. It's actually satisfying if we open our minds a bit.

[@gustavofernandezdevillanue8621]

​@@pinkertonf_es como Neymar cuando se viste como pordiocero y quiere llamar la atención. Cuando no va con su realidad.

[@bonifacelukosi9580]

@@soundscape26 pato ward sai he gets paid 100k per outfit in the paddock

[@abcede3897]

Saved? He almost destroyed it!

[@aniketkumar2210]

Well Lewis Almost make half of f1 fan quit with boredom

[@watchaporia]

F1 wouldn't be what it is today if it wasn't for Lewis Hamilton

[@harryboy3305]

It would be much better

[@soundscape26]

@@harryboy3305 How so?

[@dobro1021]

Bruh you serious? I like Lewis, but Schumacher is the most known f1 driver ever, Kids always fast as Schumacher even tho they never saw him, he is that popular.

[@alexlacl8730]

​@@dobro1021 Schumacher was not popular in america. Lewis was since his last mclaren days

[@dobro1021]

@@alexlacl8730 Lewis is popular in USA only because of DTS and couple of talk shows. but whole Europe knows about Schumacher and Europe is most of the fans

[@aaronabberz]

Such an inspiration. Love LH44