2004 Hamilton-Rosberg is, like the kids say, my "roman empire". So here goes nothing:
Contrary to popular beliefยน, Lewis and Nico didn't go entirely on their separate ways after karting. Granted, they wouldn't be teammates again in their feeder years, but they would still share the ocasional race (e.g. Macau 2003 - see: x and x) and would officially reunite to share the 2004 grid of the single-seater series 'F3 Euro Series' (full season available on youtube with Russian commentary)
ยน Melbourne 2008: "It's great to see Nico up here with me for the first time since our karting days," said Hamilton enthusiastically after showering his old rival with champagne. But Hamilton's memory was clearly playing tricks. "I didn't like to say it at the time," said Rosberg, "but he had forgotten the 2004 formula three Bahrain international in which Lewis and I finished first and second. I then went on to compete in GP2 the following season while he did another year in formula three before moving up into GP2 in 2006." [keep this quote in mind and consider coming back to it after you finish reading the post]
The F3 Euro Series is responsible for amazing pics like this one of them chilling track-side at Brno next to Nico's car, together with Robert Kubica and Bruno Spengler
[the story behind the pic recounted by Polish journalist Cezary Gutowski]
Or these ones taken at their (only) shared podium that season: Nurburgring Race 1
To tell the truth they wouldn't exactly be as dominant here as they were in their karting days. Nico and Lewis ended up 4th and 5th in the standings with 70 and 68 points respectively, plenty of points short of champion Jamie Green's 139.
But hey, they had fun!... Sort of.
(We'll get into the Lewis specifics at a later time. The gist of it is this: at the end of '04 he had been dropped from the McLaren program and came into the last two unofficial rounds as a sponsorless free agent essentially obligated to deliver a performance that would save his career. yeah.)
So we arrive to the races that we actually care about: Macau and Bahrain double-header.
(neither of them are part of the official F3 calendar but they are very important for reasons that you all shall understand in time)
Macau Grand Prix - November 21st, 2004
[painting by Joรฃo Saldanha]
I think this 20th anniversary post from Inside Macau Grand Prix does a great job at summarizing the whole thing and has some wild quotes. Go check it out. Anyway.
After miraculously managing to get a last minute sponsor, Lewis entered the GP. He showed both strength and pace all weekend, and came just short of pole, which his teammate (for this race only) Kubica beat him to. Not to worry though, because Lewis won the qualifying race! with Nico managing a second place from fourth. This now meant that they would start 1-2 for the main race.
And that is why we have these press conference pics :)
Now fair warning, prepare for everything to go to absolute shit.
It's Hamilton and Rosberg we're talking about after all.
So in the main race Nico gets the lead off the line, demoting Lewis to P2. They immediately start pulling away from the rest of the pack, engrossed in their own fight. And that isn't a problem on its own. Except for the fact that, as usual, they were focusing maybe just a bit too much on each other. Or so goes the race report, because:
What happened next was enough to [...] make seasoned F3 watchers shake their heads in disbelief. Pushing hard to try and open a gap between himself and Hamilton, Rosberg arrived at Lisboa way too fast with his brakes locked, sideways, and promptly rammed the Dallara nose first into the barriers. As if that wasn't incredible enough, Hamilton - who was also pushing way too hard - couldn't avoid him and was stuck between the stricken Finn and the barriers.
Nico retired immediately, while Lewis managed to rejoin and finish a measly 14th. Unfortunately, this result wouldn't do much to help convince McLaren of re-signing him. Lewis recalls: "It was one of the most disappointing races of my life. I thought the whole world had folded in on me and that was it โ the end."
It wasn't exactly the end, but near enough. Now there was only one opportunity left.
Bahrain Superprix - December 10th, 2004
In Bahrain Nico was doing fine, qualifying a pretty solid 6th and ending his quali race in 3rd position. Lewis... was a whole different story. He was struggling. He qualified a whopping 22nd, but still managed to comb through some of the field in the qualifying race, earning himself the 11th slot.
Lewis had to prove his worth in the main race.
At the end of the first lap he was already 4th, and quickly enough put himself in 2nd place behind Green. Then, halfway through the race, Nico overtook him. As the tyres started wearing down, Lewis seemed bound to stay behind Nico. But then a blessing was bestowed upon him: a late safety car. At the restart he took the lead from 3rd. Now with one-and-a-half laps to go, he just needed to stay calm and pay no mind to the fact that Nico was catching him.
[Hamilton (21) & Rosberg (6) - Getty Images Motorsport]
He won the 2004 Bahrain Superprix.
Now, what did Lewis have to say about this feat?
"I am just overwhelmed,"ย said Hamilton.ย "I was just trying to preserve what I had in third. I couldn't even stay with Nico. I was pretty happy to see the safety car bunching the field. I anticipated it just right. Nico and I have been friends and team-mates for a long time and it is fantastic to come away first and second." [formula-3.net]
And so at last, ladies and gentlemen, we come to our conclusion. Bahrain 2004: Lewis and Nico in parc fermรฉ after their 1-2.
This would be their last podium together until Melbourne 2008.
Thanks for coming to my TED talk.
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