Eddie Jordan has made his pick in the debate between who’d win a battle in the same car between Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher.
It’s one of the age-old F1 debates thanks to the fact the pair are locked on seven world titles each, with Hamilton obviously coming agonisingly close in 2021 in Abu Dhabi to breaking the record and standing alone on eight world titles.
Comparing across eras is easier said than done, though, with so many factors like number of races, car reliability, and strength of the field all needing to be considered when trying to come up with the definitive F1 ‘Greatest Of All Time.’
Ultimately, it’s a discussion that will never really have a final answer as it’s so open to debate. A driver like Jim Clark, with his talents in the 60s, would surely have won a glut of races if you put him into the Mercedes of the mid 2010s – part of it really does just come down to when the drivers were racing.
In terms of the stats, though, Hamilton and Schumacher are the top pair when it comes to most championships and Hamilton of course has the record, taken from Schumacher, for most race wins in F1 history, so comparing these two seems like a reasonable place to start when considering some of the all-time greats.
That is what former team boss Eddie Jordan has done, then, with him edging just about towards Hamilton over Schumacher if you put the pair, at their peaks, in the same car and equipment.
Eddie Jordan picks winner in Lewis Hamilton v Michael Schumacher debate
“Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher were from different eras in their peak,” he said to OLBG.
“I’d hate to see them battle because it would be fireworks. Schumacher would stick his elbows out more than Hamilton, but Hamilton has that extra piece of control.
“If it was over six races then I’d say it would be 3-3. I’ll stick my neck out and say that Hamilton just about edges Schumacher if they were both driving in the same car.”
Schumacher and Hamilton’s careers did eventually overlap, with Michael returning to the sport in 2010 through to the end of 2012 as he drove for Mercedes and, ironically, he was succeeded by Lewis in 2013 with Merc going on to have superb success.
It’s one of the great unknowns about F1 as to who would come out on top in their pomp as we’ll never actually know, just like if Lewis raced Ayrton Senna or if Michael went up against Juan Manuel Fangio.
It’s one of the great things about the sport, though, and is a conversation that will endure.
