As teammates — same car
Race finishesahead
Qualifyingahead
Lewis Hamilton · Heikki Kovalainen
Qualifying compares starting grid position, which covers every era — it includes any grid penalties.
Qualifying gap in the same car
−0.256s
Lewis Hamilton faster by the median gap over 35 sessions
2008
−0.289s
18
2009
−0.256s
17
last segment both reached, median gap — same constructor only
Race H2H
86
—
26
112 shared
Qualifying H2H
99
—
13
112 shared
Championship record
7
World titles
0
3
Runner-up
0
12
Top-3 finishes
0
P1
Best championship
P7
Finished ahead in the standings:
7 · 0
2007
P2
2008
P1
2009
P5
2010
P4
2011
P5
2012
P4
2013
P4
Teammate battle by season
12
6
2008
11
6
2009
Career totals
Lewis Hamilton
Heikki Kovalainen
Championships
7
0
Wins
106
1
Poles
104
1
Podiums
207
4
Fastest laps
69
2
Career points
5,118.5
105
Starts
392
112
Rate-adjusted · per start
Lewis Hamilton
Heikki Kovalainen
Win rate
27%
0.9%
Podium rate
52.8%
3.6%
Pole rate
26.5%
0.9%
Points / start
13.1
0.9
Avg grid
P4.7
P13.7
Avg finish
P5.2
P13.3
Finish rate
92.3%
82.1%
Rates reward peak form; totals reward longevity. Avg grid/finish: lower is better.
On-track overtaking
Lewis Hamilton
Heikki Kovalainen
Overtakes
2,444
1,028
Overtakes / race
6.3
9.4
Places lost
2,163
952
Sum of lap-by-lap positions gained on track — start lap and own pit laps excluded.
Only races with lap data count, so the per-race figure is the fair comparison across eras.
Why they retired
Lewis Hamilton
Heikki Kovalainen
Mechanical retirements
10
10
Crash retirements
14
9
Classified from the finishing status. Mechanical covers car failures, crash covers accidents, collisions and damage — fewer is better on both.
Retirements with an unclear cause: 6 · 1
Milestones & racecraft
2007
Debut season
2007
2007 · aged 22
First win
2008 · aged 26
2007
First pole
2008
2008 · aged 23
First title
—
P1
Best finish
P1
-0.5
Avg places gained
+0.5
Season points trajectory
Lewis Hamilton
Heikki Kovalainen
Final points each season — scoring systems changed over the eras.
Track by track
| Circuit | Lewis Hamilton | Heikki Kovalainen |
|---|---|---|
| W · Pod · Best | W · Pod · Best | |
| W · Pod · Best W · Pod · Best | ||
| Silverstone Circuit | 9 · 16 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 9 · 16 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Hungaroring | 8 · 12 · P1 | 1 · 1 · P1 |
| HAM 8 · 12 · P1 1 · 1 · P1 KOV | ||
| Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya | 7 · 13 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P7 |
| HAM 7 · 13 · P1 0 · 0 · P7 KOV | ||
| Circuit Gilles Villeneuve | 7 · 11 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P4 |
| HAM 7 · 11 · P1 0 · 0 · P4 KOV | ||
| Shanghai International Circuit | 6 · 10 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 6 · 10 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | 5 · 11 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P6 |
| HAM 5 · 11 · P1 0 · 0 · P6 KOV | ||
| Bahrain International Circuit | 5 · 11 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 5 · 11 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Yas Marina Circuit | 5 · 10 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P11 |
| HAM 5 · 10 · P1 0 · 0 · P11 KOV | ||
| Autodromo Nazionale di Monza | 5 · 8 · P1 | 0 · 1 · P2 |
| HAM 5 · 8 · P1 0 · 1 · P2 KOV | ||
| Circuit of the Americas | 5 · 9 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P15 |
| HAM 5 · 9 · P1 0 · 0 · P15 KOV | ||
| Marina Bay Street Circuit | 4 · 7 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P7 |
| HAM 4 · 7 · P1 0 · 0 · P7 KOV | ||
| Suzuka Circuit | 4 · 7 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P11 |
| HAM 4 · 7 · P1 0 · 0 · P11 KOV | ||
| Circuit de Monaco | 3 · 8 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P8 |
| HAM 3 · 8 · P1 0 · 0 · P8 KOV | ||
| Autódromo José Carlos Pace | 3 · 7 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P7 |
| HAM 3 · 7 · P1 0 · 0 · P7 KOV | ||
| Hockenheimring | 3 · 4 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 3 · 4 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit | 2 · 10 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 2 · 10 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Istanbul Park | 2 · 3 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P6 |
| HAM 2 · 3 · P1 0 · 0 · P6 KOV | ||
| Nürburgring | 2 · 2 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P8 |
| HAM 2 · 2 · P1 0 · 0 · P8 KOV | ||
| Sepang International Circuit | 1 · 6 · P1 | 0 · 1 · P3 |
| HAM 1 · 6 · P1 0 · 1 · P3 KOV | ||
| Fuji Speedway | 1 · 1 · P1 | 0 · 1 · P2 |
| HAM 1 · 1 · P1 0 · 1 · P2 KOV | ||
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway | 1 · 1 · P1 | 0 · 0 · P5 |
| HAM 1 · 1 · P1 0 · 0 · P5 KOV | ||
| Valencia Street Circuit | 0 · 3 · P2 | 0 · 0 · P4 |
| HAM 0 · 3 · P2 0 · 0 · P4 KOV | ||
| Korean International Circuit | 0 · 2 · P2 | 0 · 0 · P13 |
| HAM 0 · 2 · P2 0 · 0 · P13 KOV | ||
| Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours | 0 · 1 · P3 | 0 · 0 · P4 |
| HAM 0 · 1 · P3 0 · 0 · P4 KOV | ||
| Buddh International Circuit | 0 · 0 · P4 | 0 · 0 · P14 |
| HAM 0 · 0 · P4 0 · 0 · P14 KOV | ||
Team history
Basis
Head-to-head counts races where both drivers were classified, compared by final position (post-penalty). Teammate section counts only seasons in the same car. Career totals mirror the source data. Data: Jolpica-F1 (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).