Fernando Alonso has said his former team-mate Lewis Hamilton ranks inside the top five all-time greatest Formula 1 drivers, a list he believes is made up of the Mercedes driver, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher.
Hamilton is on the brink of a fifth world title and could make that a reality this weekend in Austin, which would put him joint-second alongside Fangio and just two adrift of Schumacher's record seven titles.
Alonso, who partnered Hamilton at McLaren during the Briton's rookie season, believed "five or seven" title would be possible for Hamilton when he won the championship in only his second season, but then a dip in form for the British squad made Alonso question that.
"Probably in 2007 it was difficult to imagine what the future would bring to Lewis or to all the other guys on the grid. He showed his talent from day one, fighting for the championship in his rookie year and winning it in 2008.
"Probably at that time we could all agree that five or seven titles would be possible for him but then he had a couple of down years, due to the performance of the car, the switching to Mercedes, so maybe at that time we all thought it wouldn’t be possible, because at the time Mercedes was struggling.
"But I’m happy for him because he showed the talent from day one. He was able to win races when the car was there to win them, but he was also able to win races in seasons when his car was not on top form, like 2009. He was still winning a couple of grands prix per year, so it’s impressive."
When asked if Hamilton ranked in the top five greatest F1 drivers of all-time, the Spaniard said he did and that he deserved the success.
"It’s difficult to make a top five of all-time greats. Probably Michael, Fangio, Senna, Prost and Lewis – that would probably be the top five.
"That’s what comes to my mind but it’s difficult to compare different times different ways to win those championships. Lewis winning five now and equalling Fangio, as I said before, is a great achievement.
"If one had to do that in our generation I’m happy it’s Lewis, because he showed the talent and he showed the commitment. When the car was dominating and delivering he won the championships and when it was not god enough he still put in some performances to show his talent. That’s difficult to see in our days."
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