Lewis Hamilton may very well be one of the most successful and famous Formula 1 drivers of his generation, but that doesn't mean that everybody knows every single detail about the British racer.
Despite the fact that his life has been very much kept in the public eye, Lewis Hamilton has attempted to keep many aspects of his private life exactly that, trying to focus on his racing career.
However, there are many details about Hamilton's racing career and personal life that have become public knowledge, even though some of his most diehard fans aren't aware of them. Within this list, we will look at 10 things that you never knew about the talented racer.
10 He Is Religious
Sometimes Lewis Hamilton may come across as a little cocky, with a bad-boy racer image being created for him, but at his core, the British megastar is actually a very religious person.
Hamilton was brought up Catholic by his family, in a religious household which is why he always wears a cross around his neck during his races, even to this day, to be in touch with God during all of his races.
In an interview with the MailOnline back in 2007, he said, “I really believe that my talent is God-given. I know I’m truly blessed. But I’ve also worked hard to get to where I am – and becoming world champion will make me work even harder.”
9 Pizza Race
It isn't just Formula 1 cars that Lewis Hamilton likes to race as he once raced fellow F1 star, Nico Rosberg in a pizza-eating contest, proving that even though he is an athlete he also loves himself some pizza, just like you and me.
Hamilton and Rosberg have known each other since they were young and have no doubt got some friendly competition behind them built upon years of sharing rooms and travelling the world together, competing on the track.
In the year 2000, they took their rivalry to a new level when they competed in a pizza-eating contest where they tried to determine who was the better man with the dough.
8 His Favorite Restaurant
Speaking of foo, everybody has a favorite restaurant that they love and go to more often than others, and Lewis Hamilton is no different, with his favorite being a place called Shanghai Blues.
The restaurant serves up Oriental food, providing the feel of actually being in China whilst still very much being in the heart of England's capital with the interior being quite dimly lit, yet the food is reportedly amazing, at least according to the F1 driver.
Shanghai Blues often has live bands entertaining guests on a weekend whilst also providing incredible food, and they no doubt aren't complaining about Hamilton appearing on a regular basis.
7 Why He Broke Things Off With Nicole Scherzinger
Whilst Lewis Hamilton is best known for his racing career, there are certainly a lot of people who only know him because of his relationship with former Pussycat Dolls singer, Nicole Scherzinger.
The pair became an A-list couple and whilst they had a very on-again, off-again relationship, it did last for many years and they certainly became a big hit as a couple in the racing world.
Sadly things didn't last between them with Nicole claiming that the racing champion didn't pay her enough attention, instead, focusing more on his racing career, which is why they had to call it off.
6 He Has A Passion For Piano
You might wonder what Lewis Hamilton gets up to in his spare time away from the race track, and one of his favorite past times is actually playing the piano, with the F1 driver spending a lot of his time learning how to play.
Because of the stress that goes into his racing career, having to focus on every small detail, when he is away from the intense racing world he likes to relax as much as possible, which is where the piano comes in.
Hamilton has actually learned quite fast with videos of him playing Queen hits surfacing on the internet as he has performed alongside industry stars such as Rita Ora, showing that he certainly has a talent for it.
5 He's A Movie Star
Some people might not know that Lewis Hamilton has actually had a career in Hollywood as well, having voiced a character in the Disney Pixar movie, Cars 2, with Hamilton voicing the British representative in the World Grand Prix.
Pixar clearly wanted to have a legitimate racing driver in the movie as a nod and a wink to the fans of F1, and Hamilton was more than happy to get involved, working alongside the likes of Michael Caine and Owen Wilson.
Hamilton was actually far more involved than simply providing voiceover work for the animation as well as he actually helped to design his car for the movie, getting it to look exactly as he wanted.
4 He's Recorded Countless Songs
Earlier in the list, we mentioned how Lewis Hamilton was a keen piano player, but that isn't where his love of music stops as he is actually a budding singer and songwriter, having written over 80 different songs in a variety of genres.
The racer is well known for booking himself music studio time after races on Sunday nights which he uses as part of his recovery time ahead of the next challenge in his career, relaxing and letting his mind unwind.
Whilst he might not be taking the music world too seriously right now, whenever he decides to retire from the racing world it could certainly be an avenue he chooses to explore.
3 His Brother Is Also A Racer
When anybody hears the Hamilton name they instantly think of Lewis (or the musical), but he isn't actually the only member of the Hamilton family who is an avid racer as his half brother Nicolas also competes.
Nicolas suffers from cerebral palsy and managed to become incredibly good at virtual racing, following in his brother's footsteps and Lewis actually helped him start to race for real with some training.
Nowadays, Nicolas competes in the British Touring Car Championship where he doesn't let his condition phase him, instead he uses a specially modified car in order to allow him to compete, which is awesome.
2 Breaking Barriers
Something that a lot of people might take for granted is the fact that Lewis Hamilton is actually the first black Formula 1 driver in history which is a responsibility that he takes very seriously.
Hamilton knows the importance of breaking down barriers and achieving goals to help his community moving forwards, inspiring future racers of all races, wanting to get to where F1 has various different races represented.
As an ambassador for UNICEF, Hamilton is always doing his part to improve things for the future, which is a side of him that often gets overlooked.
1 He Was A Child Star
It might not be too surprising to learn that someone as insanely talented as Lewis Hamilton was a child star in the racing world, but he certainly was, working with a remote control car at just five years old.
Hamilton appeared on Blue Peter and defeated the British national champion on television and from there he was off to the races...literally, going on to win countless championships from a young age.
Clearly, Hamilton has always had a skill for driving, even before he could legally do it on the roads, and therefore it seems like being a major F1 star was simply destiny for him.