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• Lewis Hamilton leads the 2020 drivers' championship.
• Hamilton has won five of the opening eight races.
• Hamilton's worst finishing position this season so far is seventh place.
• For more motoring stories, go to www.Wheels24.co.za
Lewis Hamilton is in a class of his own in 2020. The driver has won five of the opening eight races and is well on course to equal Michael Schumacher's record of seven Formula 1 championships. So far for Hamilton, the new Covid-19 affected season has treated him well and is leading the drivers' championship by a fair margin from Mercedes-AMG team mate Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
At the opening race of the season, in Austria, Hamilton's campaign got off to a not-so-good start. Having put in a good performance, Hamilton got entangled with Red Bull's Alex Albon and was penalised for it. The penalty saw him finish the race in fourth place. The next three races saw the Britain take victory, followed by a second-place at the 70th Anniversary GP and two more wins in Spain and Belgium.
This past weekend in Italy, however, was another tough one for Hamilton. Having led comfortably, he dropped to the last place after serving a penalty for entering the pits illegally. He did recover to finish the race in seventh place - his worst position of the season so far.
What the rest of the season could hold
Nine races are remaining in the revised 2020 calendar, and Hamilton is poised to add a few more first-place finishes to his name. By the time the season comes to an end, Hamilton will have equalled Schumacher's seven championships and surpassed the F1 legend's 91 victories. As it stands, Hamilton has won 89 races and could match Schumi's number by the time the Russian GP comes around.
Hamilton is yet to sign his new Mercedes contract, with the current one expiring at the end of this year. The new deal is reportedly valued in the region of €60-million (R1 188 796 800, est.), but the driver and Mercedes are yet to put pen to paper.
2020 will be a big year for Hamilton, with several records and a new deal to land in his lap.
