Record-breaking F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton says his 20꧟20 F1 title victory ranks as one of his toughest yet as off-track challenges took their toll against the backdrop of an otherwise 𝓀dominant campaign.

The Briton be🔯came the winningest F1 driver in history and drew level with Michael Schumacher with a seventh world title in 2020 during an unusual campaign clouded by the coronavirus crisis that forced a late start to the season and an intense schedule of 17 races over just 23 weeꦐks.

Despite the off-track challenges of♑ isolating be𒊎tween rounds and observing social distancing rules on events, it turned out to be arguably Hamilton’s most comprehensive title rout yet with 11 victories and a winning margin of 124 points over Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas despite missing a round when he contracted COVID-19.

Reflecting on the 💙year that has passed, Hamilton admits events off track - which also included his vociferous support of the Black Lives Matter movement - made ꧟this a year he won’t forget in a hurry.

“I think it’s almost impossibl�🀅�e to say which one is harder than the other because every year you face something new and something different. I think this year, for me personally, I would say it’s been one of the hardest years, if not the hardest year because, you know, we’ve all dealt with isolation. 

“We’ve not been around people. There’s been a great loss of life. Life is not normal. I’m grateful that we got to race and it’s been… these races can take a lot out of you and I think, yeah, for me def🌟initely, I think it’s a great achievement for Formula 1 to have got us back ♔racing. 

“Thank God for the health and wellbeing of everyone he🐻re in this sport that’s managed to get safel𝄹y through the year.” 

Hamilton is yet to agree on a new deal for the 2021 F1 World Championship but is ex🐼pected to remain with the Mercedes AMG Petronas squad, with the only relative unknown being the length of what is sp꧑eculated to be his final deal before retiring.