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The Stig: Some say he's Lewis Hamilton
The producers of Top Gear have kept the identity of "The Stig" a closely-guarded secret. With such a wide audience and fan base, that's led to endless speculation over the true identity of the show's phantom test driver, and one British celebrity is now claiming he knows who it is.
Guests on the show's "a star in a reasonably-priced car" segment work with The Stig to perfect their hot lap on Top Gear's test track, but none have ever revealed his identity. Comedian Omid Djalili, however, is insistent that The Stig is actually McLaren's star pilot Lewis Hamilton. Djalili's revelation is based on speculation garnered from speaking with The Stig, who purportedly revealed his age to the comedian, and with the show's producers, who insisted two years ago that the true Stig would become famous by now. Die-hard fans, however, will point to evidence to the contrary. Think Djalili's on to something, or is he just grabbing at gasoline-soaked straws? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below. Thanks for the tip, Dwight!
[Source: Digital Spy]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Nick 8:24PM (2/04/2008)
There's just no way, unless there's more than one Stig. The production schedule of Top Gear overlaps the F1 season, and I think that there's no way Lewis can participate in the England-based antics while travelling the world for various F1 races.
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naggs 11:28PM (2/04/2008)
he is rarely there for the taping, his sessions are done days/weeks/sometime before the taping of the studio segments. they could do all the lapping for a whole season in 2 or 3 days. and the 2 or 3 times a season when he appears as a novelty in other segments he is not really plot critical so they just use him when he is available.
it could be him
Nick 1:31AM (2/05/2008)
No way. the stars in the reasonably priced cars are taught by the stig and drive the track the same day of the show. You can tell because they appear on the show in the same clothes that they wore on the track. There's no way the BBC production staff can get all those stars to keep the same wardrobe if the track segments are filmed on a different day. Another reason why this is a ridiculous idea- any activity that puts Lewis in a racing environment is a risk that McLaren would never take unless they had to (i.e. F1 testing and occasional PR opps). There are hundreds of millions of pounds at stake with regards to Lewis' well being.
vintage 10:59PM (2/04/2008)
I am the Stig, and I'm not Lewis Hamilton.
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OisinT 8:12PM (2/04/2008)
But you see his neck in loads of episodes..... and it's white!
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Mayur 8:12PM (2/04/2008)
The Stig isn't human so he cant be Lewis Hamilton.
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Richard 9:16PM (2/04/2008)
+1
Satish 8:14PM (2/04/2008)
Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised. During the London race, the newspaper The Stig was reading probably gave it all away.
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Stuka 8:14PM (2/04/2008)
I don't think its Hamilton. Not saying it isnt possible, but when Hamilton was on the show, his driving style looked quite a bit different. Not to say he couldn't purposely do that. But that would also mean that he would never be able to film while out racing, and I am sure people would notice if he was constantly leaving his team during race season.
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Matt Bateman 8:20PM (2/04/2008)
I've always assumed The Stig to be a small collection of people, not just one person. Much like the Santa Clause at the mall. Except these people have a real skill!
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jAMES 6:51AM (2/05/2008)
I think the Stig is Tiff Niddell.
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Schwag of Tulsa 8:43PM (2/04/2008)
And some people say that Clark Kent is Superman. But he can't be - Clark Kent wears glasses!
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Anik 11:13PM (2/04/2008)
Yeah.i think theres more then one stig. The thing is a lot of those lap times are set when top gear is off air. So it could be possible for Hamilton to do it. My uncle went to one of the shows when he was in london last year and he said that they didnt set laps on the same day. Cause when he went it was sunny all day and the lap was wet.
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Pete 8:42PM (2/04/2008)
Just because the show and F1 series overlap, doesn't mean they film it that week. He could do all the filming in his offseason.
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intthis 8:48PM (2/04/2008)
here's the test: ask lewis hamilton to climb the eiffel tower using only his eyelids... because some say that the stig can do just that.
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chris 8:48PM (2/04/2008)
Yeah, it's almost impossible for The Stig to be an active race driver unless there are several Stigs, not including the few times the Stig has been a manufacturer's test driver in the case of some of the more expensive cars on Top Gear.
And even if there are multiple Stigs, I doubt one of them could possibly be a current F1 driver, they just don't have the free time and why would they need an F1 driver when a BTCC driver or someone similar could do just as good a job. If anything an F1 guy is a bad choice for the Stig, since an F1 car couldn't really be any further from a 911 or an RS4, it would be far easier for a touring car racer to be as fast as possible in production cars. Just like what you see on Best MOTORing; guys currently leading Formula Nippon and Super GT championships often aren't as fast in EVOs and S2000s compared to the retired guys since their driving style is tuned to insanely fast race cars, making road cars totally foreign to them on a track.
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Pat 8:51PM (2/04/2008)
I always thought it was Jacques Villeneuve ;-)
To pick up on the driving style argument. If it is in fact Lewis Hamilton, and he did in fact change his style when on the show ... how in the world could he have pulled off such a fast lap ... maybe he's been holding back on every single other lap he's done just so he could be so great for his in-person lap.
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Didier 9:07PM (2/04/2008)
Chances of the STIG beeing Lewis Hamilton are not so hight to be honest. That is based on filming schedule as well as some say that the STIG is not just one person/pilot but could have many "clones". I've read alot of rumors that it was British racer Ben Collins, once cited in Richard Hammond's crash report from the Health and Safety. Also evidence of Ben beeng seen prior on Top Gear without any outfit on seems to indicate a very similar body structure. Perhaps Lewis for a few takes, but "normal" STIG is NOT Lewis Hamilton in regular season.
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Tom 9:12PM (2/04/2008)
Would it be idiotic to think that The Stig is Tiff Needel? I mean that would explain why they keep his identity a secret.
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BAMF 2:23AM (2/05/2008)
Actually that sounds pretty reasonable. Tiff's a helluva driver.