Lewis Hamilton is a seven-time Formula 1 champion, global icon and—shockingly—only a casual sim racer. While many of his rivals grind iRacing lobbies for SR, Hamilton treats sim racing like a treadmill: nice to have, but easily ignored. His home rig finally surfaced during the 2020 lockdown and shows how a driver at the top of the sport sees virtual racing.
Hub: See all F1 driver rigs in one place: Complete F1 Driver Sim Racing Setups (2025).
A home rig built for fun, not sweat
When F1 shut down in 2020, Hamilton posted a short Instagram story showing his living-room simulator. Fans expected a €20,000 hydraulic monster. Instead, they saw an elegant consumer setup with comfort-first choices.
Hardware load-out
- Thrustmaster T-GT wheel – the Gran Turismo official wheel with belt drive. Smooth force feedback, but nowhere near the brutal punch of 20 Nm direct-drive units.
- Thrustmaster T3PA pedals – reliable three-pedal set, but without a load cell or hydraulic feel.
- Custom Playseat F1 Ultimate cockpit – wrapped in his LH logo. It is sturdy and ergonomic, yet still a consumer-grade frame.
- Single curved ultra-wide monitor – no triples, no VR. Even when GT Sport didn’t fully support the resolution, Hamilton simply raced in letterbox mode.
- PlayStation 4 (now PS5) with Gran Turismo Sport/7 – part sponsorship, part nostalgia. This is the only title we have ever seen him play publicly.
Hamilton could easily build a motion platform with wind simulation, actuators and Simucube power. Instead he prefers silence, simplicity and a rig that doubles as stylish furniture. He even joked that maybe it is no surprise he is not obsessed with sim racing if the seat “doesn’t even move.”
Hamilton’s gear timeline
| Year | Hardware moment | Takeaway |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Tested a Vesaro full-motion rig with Fanatec hardware for a promo | Impressed, but went straight back to real cars. |
| 2017–2019 | Gran Turismo ambassador appearances | Used Sony-provided GT wheels and pedals for marketing events. |
| 2020 | Installed the LH Playseat rig at home | Spent lockdown chasing his own time-trial records in GT Sport. |
| 2021–2024 | Minimal upgrades (likely PS5 + T-GT II pack at most) | Not part of the “upgrade every six weeks” culture most sim racers live in. |
The pattern: he uses what he needs and ignores the rest. No direct drive, no ActivePedal, no motion bucket.
Software loyalty: Gran Turismo or nothing
Hamilton repeatedly says consumer sims are just entertainment. When he needs hardcore simulator time, he visits Mercedes’ F1 simulator with bespoke physics and engineers on hand. At home he stays inside the Gran Turismo ecosystem for five reasons:
- Sentiment – he grew up playing Gran Turismo and still calls it the “Maestro” of console sims.
- Sponsorship – he has co-created DLC challenges and still represents the franchise at events.
- Consistency – the physics may be limited, but he knows exactly how the game behaves.
- Accessibility – friends can join quickly on PSN without complicated PC league setups.
- Minimal fuss – console updates, automatic wheel presets and no modding keep it frictionless.
Games he openly says he does not play at home: iRacing, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2 or even the official F1 series. If he needs car-specific preparation, he’ll sit in the Mercedes simulator for a targeted engineering session and then leave the driving to the team’s sim specialists.
Why Hamilton never fully connected with home sim racing
Hamilton has been candid about the disconnect between home rigs and real cars:
- Missing physical cues – without G-forces, yaw and heave, his brain expects sensations that never arrive.
- Technique mismatch – the pedal feel, brake pressure and steering weight in consumer hardware do not match an F1 car, so he sees limited training transfer.
- Time priorities – he would rather spend off-track hours on fitness, mental rehearsal and recovery than grind online races.
- Perfectionism – as someone with finely tuned instincts, slightly “off” physics become an obstacle, not a learning tool.
He still respects sim racing for younger drivers and fans, pointing out how many talents entered real motorsport through online series. He simply does not need it personally.
What he actually uses the rig for
Even a casual user gets some value out of a home rig:
- Light reflex and coordination sessions during lockdown or long travel breaks.
- Time-trial challenges – his own Gran Turismo Maestro DLC frustrated him, which tells you how strict those laps were.
- Casual PSN sessions with friends like Gasly and Leclerc—sometimes racing, sometimes shooters.
- Fan engagement content – livestreams and DLC drops keep the community talking.
- Quick track familiarization for brand-new circuits, but never a full week of grinding.
- Mercedes simulator collaborations when the team faces a technical issue (porpoising in 2022, for example).
Lessons for regular sim racers
- Comfort beats overkill. A stable rig that you actually sit in will help more than a half-built motion platform.
- Buy what fits your goals. Hamilton wants casual fun, so he stopped upgrading. Decide if you’re chasing lap times, endurance training or just relaxation.
- Realism isn’t one thing. Even F1 drivers prefer different feedback loops; don’t feel pressured to chase pro-grade hardware.
- Software loyalty is fine. If one title keeps you consistent, stick with it and refine your driving there.
- Respect your own path. Hamilton became a legend through real track time. Sim racing is just another tool, not a mandatory ritual.
Lewis Hamilton is technically a sim racer—but only on his terms. His rig is high quality, console-based, built for enjoyment and not pretending to be an F1 cockpit. That honesty might be the most “Hamilton” detail of all.