Roger Federer & Michael Jordan Leave Lewis Hamilton & Co ...

The Greatest of All Time debate. A debate that’s so classically a sports thing is also one that’ll never have a clear winner. In Formula 1, is it Michael Schumacher or Lewis Hamilton? Despite statistics favoring Novak Djokovic, are Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal the real GOATs in tennis? And from Michael Jordan or LeBron James in basketball to Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo in soccer, the debate is never-ending. Phew! That was a lot of names and a lot of potential candidates for GOATs in different sports. But is there one who stands above everyone else?

Considering Hamilton is arguably the greatest driver to have raced in F1, and the fact that he’s one of their own, a Mercedes team personnel decided to transcend the confines of just F1 and ask his fellow team members who they think the ultimate GOAT is. 

If the GOAT debate within a sport is tough to establish common ground on, finding the right answer to who the greatest sportsperson of all time is would be even more challenging. The thing is, there is no right answer. There’s a reason different sports exist. Every sport challenges players in it differently. Besides the importance of mental toughness, there’s not much else that’s common between sports. So, the question of a sporting GOAT will never have just one answer. Even so, the Mercedes garage gave it a shot.

The interviewer went around the Silver Arrows garage, asking, “Outside of F1, who’s the GOAT?” Hamilton, the first to be asked, chose NBA legend Michael Jordan. A close friend and his hero—and that the former Chicago Bulls player changed the global basketball landscape—Hamilton’s choice made sense. So did George Russell’s choice. Seeing as the young Brit is a big tennis fan, he chose the classy Roger Federer. With a few other team personnel joining forces with Hamilton and Russell, the selections became more diverse as the ordeal continued. 

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The GOAT debate wouldn’t be complete without Lionel Messi, so his name came up. A few chose former soccer players and legends Roy Keane and Thierry Henry, while others chose former rugby union players Jonny Wilkinson and Brian O’Driscoll. MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi, long-distance runner Eliud Kipchoge, cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, and Olympic champion sailor Ben Ainslie topped off the list. Well, not quite. Popstars Harry Styles and Shania Twain made their way into the debate as well! While the Mercedes garage was conflicted about the GOAT debate, someone from McLaren combined the best of the best to make the ultimate athlete. 

Australian McLaren driver Oscar Piastri is one of the most sports-loving F1 drivers on the grid. Growing up in Melbourne, he fell in love with every sport he could witness and try out, finally choosing motorsport as his career path. But just because he chose F1 doesn’t mean he still doesn’t draw inspiration from every other sport he grew up enjoying. As per an article by GP Fans, “For Piastri, the ultimate athlete would possess Michael Jordan’s mindset, Rafael Nadal’s strength, Usain Bolt’s legs, Lionel Messi’s feet, and Steve Smith’s hands.”

Nadal’s ability to push himself to the extreme limit every time he steps onto a tennis court; Bolt and Messi’s dominance in their respective sports; Australian cricketer Steve Smith’s ability to bring out the best in others and Jordan’s phenomenal hand-eye coordination. This is everything he looks up to in these sporting stalwarts. Can you imagine how formidable a Nadal-Messi-Bolt-Jordan-Smith combination would be? Could Piastri’s ultimate athlete be the greatest sportsperson of all time?

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As the Mercedes admin wrote with the Instagram post: “And now… over to you! ????” Who do you think is the GOAT outside of F1?