Lewis Hamilton is gearing up to sport the red for the upcoming season as he has signed a multi-year contract with the Ferrari F1 team to continue his bid to earn his eighth world title. As the 39-year-old prepares for a new chapter in his F1 career, an interesting fact about the Brit is surfacing in the motorsport world that he will be having number 44 on his car at Ferrari, a number that was a part of his journey during his time with Mercedes as well.
As per Hamilton's claims, the number 44 holds a special significance for him, and he has used it consistently ever since the FIA introduced the permanent car numbers in 2014.
Lewis Hamilton's Major Revelation
The seven-time world champion has previously admitted that the number 44 is used on his car due to its sentimental value. During a conversation in 2022, Hamilton shared that he chose the number because it's been recognized by his family and has remained meaningful to both him and his fans.
"That’s the number we raced with for many years, and then when I joined Formula One, I had to be whatever the team asked me to be. And then further into my career they then decided to allow the drivers to choose their own number, and that would be their number forever, and I went back to the number where it all started, " Hamilton said. It’s the number that my family recognized the most; it’s the number that has been loyal to me and to my fans,” he added.
Hamilton's first Ferrari will be unveiled on February 19, 2025, just after Formula One's 75th anniversary season launch at London's The O2.
It also traces back to his karting days
One of the other major reasons Hamilton chose 44 as his car number is that it was the number on his kart during his early days when he aspired to become an F1 driver. Hamilton once shared that his father bought him a second-hand cart that had been used by several families. His father rebuilt it for him, and since Hamilton didn’t know which number to choose, he decided to stick with 44, the number already on the kart.