Ben Elliot

Lewis Hamilton Ben Elliot

No driver has ever made such an instant impact on the sport of F1 racing as Lewis Hamilton. The first black grand prix driver, his astonishing level of success in his rookie season together with his swash-buckling, attacking style has created a sensation. It has also been a central factor in the most exciting and controversial season of F1 in living memory as Hamilton was involved in a three-way fight for the world crown. Industrial espionage, claims of team favouritism and some stunning on-track action have peppered Hamilton's first season in the sport's top category.

Here is the in-depth story of this phenomenon - from his upbringing on a Stevenage council estate to the day he first sat in a kart as a seven-year-old to his sensational challenge on the world title. Friends, colleagues, team-mates, rivals, chaperones and engineers who have worked with him here give some remarkable insights into Lewis the man and the driver, as well as into the close but complex relationship with father Anthony, the man who has largely steered his career. In the process, we see how F1 success has changed this young man's life in a very short space of time.

"'Lewis Hamilton is on the verge of Tiger Woods-like status: forget his skin colour, it's about the emergence of a phenomenon. He's in the process of transcending the whole sport, imprinting himself into the consciousness of people who would normally have little or no interest in Formula One.' The Sunday Times, April 15, 2007"