Lewis Hamilton could become Brazilian citizen with vote set to take place

Lewis Hamilton's association with Brazil could be set to get stronger with the F1 icon on the verge of becoming an honorary citizen.

Hamilton, 37, has never made any secret of his love for the South American country, and has regularly sported racing helmets with its national colours on when racing at Interlagos. After winning at the venue in 2021, he took a Brazilian flag with him onto the podium.

Explaining his helmet design last year, Hamilton said it was a tribute to the legendary Ayrton Senna, who he described as his "greatest inspiration" in F1. It was the way he raced, his passion for life and for the sport," he said.

“But more than anything it was the way he faced alone a system that wasn't always kind to him." Senna won three world titles before he died after a tragic race accident in Imola in 1994, aged just 34.

Hamilton could soon be about to have more in common with his hero than F1 success. A bill to make the 37-year-old an honorary citizen is pending in the lower house of the Brazilian parliament - but has yet to be voted on.

The notion was proposed by congressman Andre Figueiredo after last year’s Grand Prix, where the crowd chanted Hamilton's name along with that of Senna. Indeed, the Mercedes man has vowed to visit the country more regularly.

''I want to spend more time in Brazil. There is such a beautiful culture here. I've only been to Rio (de Janeiro) and Sao Paulo, but I want to come back here for Christmas, New Year or something like that,'' Hamilton was quoted as saying by Reuters.

“Neymar invites me every year, and [pro surfer] Gabriel [Medina] invites me every year, but I never had the chance - I’m waiting for my Brazilian passport.” Whilst that quip may have been made in jest, Hamilton