Lewis Hamilton vs Heikki Kovalainen

2008·

Lewis Hamilton edged Heikki Kovalainen 12–6 in the races and 13–5 in qualifying at McLaren in 2008. Lewis Hamilton scored 98 points to 53.

Lewis HamiltonHeikki Kovalainen

13Qualifying5

18 shared races

12Race day6

18 shared races

98Points53

in shared races, as awarded at the time

243Points (today’s rules)136

in shared races, rescored 25-18-15…

Wins: 5/1
Podiums: 10/3
Poles: 7/1
Retirements: 1/3
Best finish: P1/P1
Avg. grid: 3.9/4.4

Race by race

Round-by-round comparison of Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen
R	Grand Prix	Grid	Lewis Hamilton	Heikki Kovalainen	Points
1	1Australian Grand Prix	1/3	P1	P5	10 / 4
2	2Malaysian Grand Prix	9/8	P5	P3	4 / 6
3	3Bahrain Grand Prix	3/5	P13▼	P5	0 / 4
4	4Spanish Grand Prix	5/6	P3	Accident	6 / 0
5	5Turkish Grand Prix	3/2	P2	P12▼	8 / 0
6	6Monaco Grand Prix	3/4	P1	P8	10 / 1
7	7Canadian Grand Prix	1/7	Collision	P9	0 / 0
8	8French Grand Prix	13/10	P10▼	P4	0 / 5
9	9British Grand Prix	4/1	P1	P5	10 / 4
10	10German Grand Prix	1/3	P1	P5	10 / 4
11	11Hungarian Grand Prix	1/2	P5	P1▲	4 / 10
12	12European Grand Prix	2/5	P2	P4	8 / 5
13	13Belgian Grand Prix	1/3	P3	P10▼	6 / 0
14	14Italian Grand Prix	15/2	P7	P2▲	2 / 8
15	15Singapore Grand Prix	2/5	P3	P10▼	6 / 0
16	16Japanese Grand Prix	1/3	P12▼	Engine	0 / 0
17	17Chinese Grand Prix	1/5	P1	Hydraulics	10 / 0
18	18Brazilian Grand Prix	4/5	P5	P7	4 / 2
	Average finish		P4.4	P6.0

How to read this table

The driver ahead in a round is shown in bold, the other in grey. Grid shows Lewis Hamilton / Heikki Kovalainen.
P1 a win,P3 a podium,DNF a retirement.
▲ a finish at least 4 places better than that driver’s own average finish this season (see the average row), ▼ at least 4places worse. Retirements are not counted in the average.

Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen in other seasons

Other seasons in which Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen were teammates
Season	Team	Matchup	Quali	Race	Points
2009	McLaren	Lewis Hamilton vs Heikki Kovalainen	12–5	12–5	49–22

Lewis Hamilton’s career Heikki Kovalainen’s career McLaren 2008 season All teammate battles

How these numbers are calculated

Only races both drivers started are counted. Entries that did not qualify, did not pre-qualify or were withdrawn are excluded, as are cars that never left the grid or the garage, and the Indianapolis 500 of 1950–1960.
Until the mid-1960s drivers could share a car during a race. Each driver is compared from the car they started (which sets their grid position), with the best result of any car they drove and the points from all of them, as officially credited.
Qualifying is compared on grid position rather than session times. Session-by-session qualifying data only exists from 1994, while grid position is recorded for over 99% of entries right back to 1950 — including every race of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.
On race day the driver classified ahead takes the round. If neither was classified, the one who completed more laps is credited; if both retired on the same lap it is scored as a tie and excluded from the tally.
Points are those awarded at the time and include sprint races from 2021. Where the season used an older system, a second points row rescores every round under the current system so seasons from different eras can be compared.
These are points scored in the races both drivers started, not their season totals: races either missed, or contested alongside a different teammate, are left out. Up to 1990 even full-season totals differ from the championship standings, because only a driver’s best results counted towards the title. In 1988 Alain Prost outscored Ayrton Senna 105 to 94 and still lost the championship. Theseason page has the final standings.