Imagine being so good at your job that you get honorary citizenship for it.
Well, that was the case for Lewis Hamilton, who now proudly calls himself half-Brazilian after one of the greatest race weekends Formula 1 has ever seen.
The Brit’s first world title came at Sao Paulo’s Interlagos Circuit in 2008, but he took it from home hero Felipe Massa – who he would later develop a bitter rivalry with – something you’d think would make him public enemy number one.
However, his personality and love for their all-time great Ayrton Senna quickly made up for it, and in 2021 Hamilton returned with their full support, but the odds against him.
In one of the closest title battles in F1 history, the Mercedes megastar arrived in Brazil with a 19-point world championship deficit on rival Max Verstappen with just four races to go.
He’d just finished second to the Dutchman in the previous two Grand Prix, but had the perfect opportunity to strike back with Brazil being a sprint weekend, featuring a shortened race with half-points on Saturday and the main race on Sunday.
Hamilton got off to the perfect start by beating his rival to pole position for the sprint race, but it all came crashing down when he was disqualified for an illegal rear wing.
“I remember in that moment for me, my heart just sunk,” the Stevenage-born star recalled. “Because I knew that I had to win every race, and I remember in that moment I thought it was over, I can’t win this world championship.”
Arguably Hamilton’s biggest skill in F1 is his resilience, and like always he came back the next day and went from last to fifth at the chequered flag with an astonishing 14 overtakes.
That performance earned him fifth on the grid for the feature race, but there was more drama to come, with Mercedes taking an engine penalty, dropping him back a further five places.
With over 200,000 home fans on his side, there was a feeling something special might happen on Sunday, but no one could have predicted quite how special things would turn out.
By just lap 19 of 71 Hamilton overtook Red Bull’s Sergio Perez for second, and then faced the final boss of Verstappen up ahead.
It took until lap 48 for him to get within striking distance, and with the title leader making an early defence on the main straight, it was clear things wouldn’t be easy.
Coming down to turn four, an almost helpless Verstappen forced Hamilton to go the long way round, and then took him well off the track as both cars flew onto the asphalt.
“Lewis there’s apparently no investigation for running you off the track,” Hamilton’s race engineer told him, before he sarcastically replied: “Of course not, of course.”
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It took 10 laps before Hamilton could again try the same move, but he wasn’t even close, and had to re-think.
On lap 59 he had the plan nailed down. He faked an attempt at turn one, causing Verstappen to go off-line and ruin his corner exit. Hamilton was instantly back on the racing line, though, and all over the Dutchman’s rear win, allowing him to finally spring the move at turn four with no chance of reprisal.
Hamilton would recall: “The first time I tried to overtake him, Max braked and went super, super deep. I would have made it into the corner if he hadn’t gone off the track.
“I had to recollect myself. I thought, ‘I can’t let him do that again’. The next time I was behind him, I ‘dummied’ him into Turn one. I made Max think I wanted to dive up the inside so he defended, which meant he had a tighter corner though Turn one and I could take a nice wide line and position my car in a much better position. So when I came out onto the straight I slingshot past him.
“It was amazing and one of the races I’m most proud of. Looking at the setbacks we endured it proves that you should never, ever give up.”
Hamilton would end the race a whopping 10 seconds ahead, and finish the weekend with 24 overtakes on a 20-car grid.
During the cool down lap he’d also grab a Brazilian flag off of a steward to hold on the podium for his adoring supporters.
He commented: “I think for sure it was my best race ever and probably the most special race of my career. I was so proud to hold this flag on the podium. Growing up I’d always loved Ayrton Senna; I’d watch him when he was carrying the flag.”
Hamilton would go on to lose the title to Verstappen in Abu Dhabi in controversial circumstances, but perhaps in an effort to lift up their hero after his biggest low, Brazil then offered to make Hamilton an honorary citizen.
Speaking at the ceremony in 2023, he would comment: “I feel like now I’m one of you.
“I have so many amazing memories of Brazil, and particularly 2021. Knowing you guys would cheer me on the way was one of the most special moments of my entire life. I can’t wait for us to continue to strive ahead.”
Two seasons in the wilderness followed Hamilton’s greatest ever win in 2021, but now he’s back at the front end, racking up a pair of wins in Britain and Belgium to show he’s still got it.
The victories are timely, too, with Verstappen’s two years of F1 dominance now seemingly at an end as the chasing pack catches up.
With the F1 season now in the home stretch, Hamilton will be hoping for one more victory before his much-heralded move to Ferrari in 2025.
And if he’s to do it in Brazil as one of their own, Sao Paulo will be rocking like never before.
