Who is better, Hamilton or Rathmann?
Lewis Hamilton leads with a GOAT score of 96.1 against 79.1 for Jim Rathmann — a gap of 17.0 points on GOAT Rank's weighted model.
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Hamilton vs Rathmann
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Quick answer
GOAT Rank currently ranks Lewis Hamilton above Jim Rathmann: 96.1 vs 79.1. Lewis Hamilton leads on Honours, Dominance, Longevity.
How the GOAT Score is calculated →GOAT verdictgoatrank.world
HamiltonWinner
96.1Hamilton wins: Dominance, Peak, Longevity, Honours, Statistics
Rathmann
79.1Rathmann wins: no category outright
Candidates
Locked to Formula 1Shareable URL · /compare/hamilton-vs-jim-rathmann
Time range
Showing full careers. Pick a window to recalculate the selected period.
Category radar
Verdict
Weighted GOAT score
🇬🇧 Lewis Hamilton
96.1
Hamilton leads in 5 of 5 weighted categories.
1. Lewis Hamilton
2. Jim Rathmann
Category breakdown
Season form · Form index per season
Career timeline · Form index per season
Cumulative output season by season — the shape of each career against the other.
GOAT pace tracker
Through age 22 · Form index per season
1. 🇬🇧 Lewis Hamilton4 race wins
1 season by age 22 · 4 per season
Setting the pace at age 22
No verified birth date for Rathmann — shown in the pro-debut view instead.
Every career is cut at the season the athlete turned 22, so a rookie today is measured against exactly what a legend had banked by the same birthday.
| Metric | HamiltonActive | RathmannRetired |
|---|---|---|
| World titles | 7 | — |
| Race wins | 105 | — |
| Pole positions | 104 | — |
| Podiums | 202 | — |
| Fastest laps | 67 | — |
| Win rate | 29.9% | — |
| Indianapolis 500 wins | — | 1 |
| Indianapolis 500 runner-up finishes | — | 3 |
| Indy 500 starts | — | 14 |
| Career championship points | — | 30 |
| Career span in years | — | 15 |
| Dominance w25% | 95 | 72 |
| Peak w20% | 94 | 92 |
| Longevity w20% | 99 | 80 |
| Honours w20% | 96 | 72 |
| Statistics w15% | 97 | 82 |
Fan vote — data vs the people
GOAT Rank · the data
Hamilton96.1
Rathmann79.1
FAQ
Where does Rathmann beat Hamilton?
Rathmann does not lead any of the five categories; Hamilton is ahead or level on all of them.
How is the Hamilton vs Rathmann score calculated?
Both are scored on peak, dominance, honours, statistics, longevity within their sport. Hamilton: 96.1, Rathmann: 79.1.
What do you think?
0 commentsMake your case for Hamilton vs Rathmann. The scoring is published in full — if you can point at the pillar or the weight you disagree with, we read it. Read the methodology paper.