Where is every driver from Lewis Hamilton’s first F1 podium finish after he reached 200?

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Lewis Hamilton became the first driver in Formula 1 history to score 200 podiums when he finished third at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix.

Hamilton qualified fifth at the Hungaroring but gained a place from Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz at the start. He then undercut Max Verstappen and managed to keep the Red Bull driver behind before emerging unscathed from late contact.

After a record-extending 104th career win at the previous round at Silverstone, he brought up another milestone in Budapest with his double century. Verstappen ranks second among active drivers with 127 podiums, with Fernando Alonso in third with 106 to his name.

Hamilton first finished in the top three on his F1 debut at the 2007 Australian GP. He became just the 16th different driver to do so, and the third since the 1960s.

Kimi Raikkonen won the race for Ferrari, with Alonso second and McLaren teammate Hamilton third. That was how they finished in the championship too after an epic battle that saw Raikkonen prevail by a single point.

Where are they now? – Lewis Hamilton’s first podium edition

Aston Martin’s Alonso is the only driver from Hamilton’s debut who’s still competing in F1. But while almost the entire field are now in their 40s or 50s, many continue to race in other series.

For instance, Robert Kubica is part of the World Endurance Championship field, as is Hamilton’s former teammate Jenson Button (alongside his television duties). The likes of Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg, Ralf Schumacher, David Coulthard and Anthony Davidson are better known as pundits these days.

Another name that stands out is Alex Wurz, who heads up the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association. Meanwhile, Vitantonio Liuzzi has taken on a stewarding role that saw him adjudicate on the classic 2021 battle between Hamilton and Verstappen.

It was the Italian who handed the Red Bull driver a grid penalty after the infamous collision at Monza. It remains to be seen which drivers from the current grid ending up in a similar position in the future.

Kimi Antonelli sounds like the next Lewis Hamilton after what he said in Hungary

Hamilton’s peerless track record leaves Mercedes with perhaps the most daunting succession task in F1 history. Toto Wolff knows there’s arguably only one driver who would be a guaranteed success as his replacement.

But he’s been warned that Verstappen wouldn’t want George Russell as his teammate. He’d only join if he could go up against the youngster Kimi Antonelli, a driver he’d expect to dominate.

If Antonelli does ascend to the Silver Arrows next year, comparisons with Hamilton will be inevitable. The 17-year-old has won two of the last three F2 races to give himself a slim chance of claiming the championship, just as Hamilton did when the series was still known as GP2.

Mercedes know that the Briton is far more than just a racing driver. But one journalist already believes Antonelli has a similar attitude to Hamilton in the feeder series, which bodes well for his development.