Lewis Hamilton hasn't won a Grand Prix during the past two seasons (Image: Getty)
When it comes to Formula 1 racing, Haas driver Kevin Magnussen and Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton are a world apart in their driving styles. However, there remains one factor that both drivers have in common which is that they both secured a podium in their first F1 race.
Both F1 drivers secured podium finishes in the first race of their Formula 1 careers and coincidentally, for McLaren at the Albert Park Grand Prix circuit in Melbourne, Australia. Hamilton’s first Grand Prix was on 18th March 2007 under team principal Ron Dennis.
Young Hamilton overtook then-BMW driver Fernando Alonso in the first corner and maintained second position, only to be overtaken by Alonso again after pitting. The rookie driver’s third-place finish in his debut Grand Prix was a remarkable achievement. The same year, Hamilton won four races and achieved nine pole positions but lost the championship to Kimi Räikkönen by a single point.
Similarly, Magnussen made his Formula 1 debut in 2014 for McLaren and finished second at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. He also became the first Dane to claim a podium finish in Formula 1.
That season, Magnussen ended his debut season with an 11th-place finish in the Drivers’ Standings with 55 points. However, the following year, he was demoted to test and reserve driver for McLaren after being replaced by Fernando Alonso.
Despite the explosive start to their Formula 1 journey, both former McLaren drivers are on an entirely different course as of today. Hamilton races for Mercedes with a record of seven world championship wins, 197 podium finishes, and 4639.5 points in his career so far.
On the other hand, Magnussen drives for an American outfit Haas, with a total of 186 points and just one podium finish in his career, meaning the Dane hasn’t scored a podium again after his debut Grand Prix in 2014.
Irrespective of their current standings, achieving a Grand Prix podium finish in a driver’s debut race is, in many respects, a legendary accomplishment.
