Jackie Stewart saw himself in 299-race Formula 1 driver who twice defeated Fernando Alonso

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Sir Jackie Stewart is one the greatest drivers to ever race in Formula 1, achieving three championships across a brilliant career.

Making his debut with Owen Racing Organisation – later BRM – in 1966, Stewart raced in the sport during arguably its most dangerous and darkest era.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Formula 1 did not have the safety precautions seen today, with multiple fatal accidents occurring at this time.

But that is what Stewart so impressive. Despite the heightened danger, the Scottish driver’s pace and racecraft made him a fierce competitor on the track.

Moving to Matra in 1968, Stewart won his first title a year later before moving to Tyrrell and winning the 1971 and 1973 titles.

The 65-year-old retired from F1 after winning his third championship. In total, Stewart grabbed 27 wins, 43 podiums and 15 pole positions.

Jackie Stewart saw himself in Sebastian Vettel when he won his four titles with Red Bull

Only six drivers have beaten Stewart’s total of three titles – Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Alain Prost (4), Juan Manuel Fangio (5) and Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton (7).

In his 2018 episode on the Beyond The Grid podcast, Stewart was asked who out of the current grid at that time was most like himself.

At that point, Hamilton was on the verge of becoming a five-time champion, beating rival Vettel’s feat of four. The German failed to catch the Mercedes in his Ferrari after dominating the early 2010s with Red Bull.

Vettel was almost unstoppable with the Milton Keynes-based outfit between 2010 and 2013, beating Fernando Alonso to the title in 2010 and 2012, whilst completely controlling the 2011 and 2013 seasons.

For Stewart, the German reminded him most of himself during his career. When asked the question, the 65-year-old said: “Vettel at his height, I think.

“When he was winning his, four-times world champion at that time, he developed into being somebody that I really thought that I admired as a driver”.

What Sebastian Vettel has said about his Ferrari engineer after Lewis Hamilton’s signing

Vettel departed Red Bull in 2015 for Ferrari where he would spend the next six seasons. The German would become Hamilton’s main rival for the title, but just could not get the edge over the Mercedes.

With Riccardo Adami as his race engineer, Vettel won 14 races with the Maranello outfit and finished runner-up in the championship twice. The 37-year-old left Ferrari in 2021 for Aston Martin after a poor run of form in the previous two seasons.

In 2025, Ferrari will have Hamilton on their books and the Brit will be keen to find his feet with the team after a difficult last few years at Mercedes.

Adami is set to be named as the 40-year-old’s race engineer. Hamilton has already asked Vettel about Adami as he looks to establish a relationship similar to what he had with Peter Bonnington.

Vettel was very complimentary of Adami during his time at Ferrari – a hugely encouraging sign for Hamilton as he looks to grab his eighth title with the team in 2025.