Lewis finishes runner-up in BBC Sports Personality… again

Nigel Mansell first won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1986 - and he didn’t even win the F1 title that year. Damon Hill first won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1994 - and he lost out to Michael Schumacher that season. Just two examples of gallant losers winning the hearts of the British public.

Incidentally, both Mansell and Hill went on to win second Sports Personality awards, in years when they did win their sole championships (1992 and 1996, respectively).

It’s fairly clear that Lewis Hamilton is not as popular as Mansell and Hill were. In the light of Mansell and Hill’s successes, Lewis should have won two Sports Personality of the Year awards already.

Hamilton’s debut season was much more impressive than the respective seasons Mansell and Hill had in 1986 and 1992, yet he still didn’t earn enough votes to become 2007 Sports Personality - instead, he was beaten by Joe Calzaghe, a Welsh boxer with a relatively low profile; both Mansell and Hill would have beaten Calzaghe hands-down.