The end of the 2006 Formula 1 season marked the end of an era. Alonso won his second consecutive world championship, Michael Schumacher retired and the world of Formula One seemed on the verge of losing more of its following and appeal.
Fast forward to the start of the 2007 season and a little-known driver named Lewis Hamilton was about to shake things up and take the formula one world by storm. The biggest question on most people’s lips was who is he, where did he come from and how good is he. The first two questions are pretty straightforward to answer, he’s proving the answer to the third question as the current season progresses.
Born on January 7, 1985 in Stevenage, Herts., Lewis Hamilton began his racing career like many other F1 greats, at the age of 8 competing in karts. He spent the next few years of his life working his way up the Karting ranks, winning races and championships and attracting the attention of some of the biggest names in motorsport, most notably the McLaren team. In 1999, Mclaren hired Lewis for the driver development support program. Crucially, this contract included the possibility of a Formula 1 race in future years. By 2001, Lewis had progressed through the ranks and began his career in car racing in the British Formula Renault winter series. The following year he joined the Manor Motorsport team in the Formula Renault championship, finishing third overall with three wins and three pole positions. He stayed with the team in 2003 winning the championship and even made his Formula Three debut in the final race of the season.
For the next several years, Lewis Hamilton dominated Formula 3 before joining the GP series in 2006 with the ART Grand Prix team and winning the championship in his first year – perhaps a sign of things to come! The 2006 GP2 season demonstrated Lewis’ excellent driving. skill with high speed overtaking movements, faster span and professional approach.
The end of the 2006 Formula 1 season saw big changes to the McLaren Formula 1 team. Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya left the team to pursue a career in NASCAR, while his teammate Kimi Raikkonen joined rival team Ferrari. Team manager Ron Dennis has already managed to sign reigning world champion Fernando Alonso for the number one spot on the team and speculation was rife as to who would join him. After months of rumors and conjecture, McLaren finally announced in late November 2006 that Lewis Hamilton would join the team.
And so the 2007 season began, McLaren being content with the fact that the reigning world champion was driving one of their cars and had a confident and capable number two driver to back him up. This would provide a massive and much-needed boost in interest not only in the UK but worldwide in Formula One. No one suspected how things were going to turn out and how their newest recruit was about to make Formula One history. . A true legend in the making.
