Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton is an English driver of mixed Caribbean-British descent. He first caught the attention of McLaren team principal Ron Dennis as a ten year old, when he informed Dennis that he intended racing for him in the future. In 2010 Hamilton will look to recapture the form that saw him win the 2008 Drivers Championship.

Nationality: English
Date of Birth: 7/01/1985
Team: McLaren-Mercedes
World Championship Titles: 1 (2008)
First Race: 2007 Australian Grand Prix
First Win: 2007 Canadian Grand Prix
Car Number: 2
2009 Championship Position: 5th

Hamilton was signed by McLaren’s young driver support program at the age of 13, having achieved success in Junior Yamaha racing and Junior Intercontinental Formula A racing. Hamilton moved steadily through the ranks during the next three years, eventually winning the European Formula A Championship at the age of 16 with the maximum possible points.

Louis Hamilton moved to Formula Renault in 2002, finishing third in the championship on debut. The following year Hamilton won the championship, prompting a move to Formula 3 racing where he finished in a creditable 5th position in his first season.

A first Formula 3 championship win the following season resulted in Hamilton taking the step up to GP 2 racing, winning the championship at first attempt. Hamilton’s GP 2 win coincided with Juan Pablo Montoya’s departure from McLaren, and there were few surprises when Ron Dennis offered the position to his young protege.

Hamilton made a stunning Formula One entry in 2007, narrowly missing out on winning the Championship title on debut. He broke a number of records during his debut year, including the record for the youngest driver to lead the Drivers’ Championship, the most pole positions in a debut season and the most wins in a debut season.

While Hamilton’s Formula One debut was nothing less than sensational, it was marred by several incidents that took place during 2007, as well as a volatile relationship with teammate Fernando Alonso.

Hamilton’s relationship with his mentor, McLaren principal Ron Dennis, also became strained during this period, deteriorating to the point where the two were no longer on speaking terms. According to Alonso, Hamilton was chosen as the team’s preferred champion ahead of the 2007 Japanese Grand Prix. Ironically, both drivers lost out on the Championship title, as the race was eventually won by Kimi Räikkönen.

In 2008 Lewis Hamilton achieved his dream of winning the Drivers Championship by clinching the title from Ferrari’s Felipe Massa in the last lap of the final race of the season. The win made Hamilton the youngest driver in history to win the Drivers Championship, and the first British champion since Damon Hill in 1996.

The 2009 season proved to be somewhat less impressive for Hamilton. With McLaren struggling to field a competitive car, Hamilton’s results suffered. The Briton nevertheless managed to find some form in the second half of the season, winning two races and finishing on the podium on another three occasions.