It seems hard to believe that Lewis Hamilton has only been in Formula 1 for two seasons, such has been his seismic impact on the sport in that time.

The first black driver, so nearly the first rookie title winner, and then finally last year the youngest ever world champion – not to mention Britain’s first F1 king for 12 years.

The circumstances of those achievements could hardly have been more dramatic either, with the feud with team-mate Fernando Alonso and the trauma of the McLaren/Ferrari ‘spygate’ affair escalating the tension in 2007, and then last year’s palpitation-inducing climax seeing Hamilton only become champion with a pass at the final corner of the final race of the season.

Hamilton's meteoric rise has seen him become one of the world's most iconic sportsmen – a status that sports marketing experts believe may net him career earnings of more than $1bn – and a regular on the A-list celebrity circuit along with his glamorous Pussycat Doll girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger.

His relationship with the British press (which likes to build up its sports stars the better to knock them down) has gone through some rocky patches, notably after his tortured explanation of his decision to move to Switzerland.

And while he is F1's most marketable driver and its biggest box-office draw, Hamilton has become an anti-hero for a significant section of the sport's fanbase, as well as a target of racist bigotry from its uglier elements.

Perhaps, like his hero Ayrton Senna, Lewis is destined to remain a polarising figure; and envy of his instant success and fame surely goes some way to explaining why, by his own admission, he is not the most popular driver with his peers.

On the circuit, Hamilton's swashbuckling style and penchant for oversteer are a joy to behold, but several high-profile mistakes during the 2008 campaign nearly cost him the championship and underlined the need for greater mental discipline.

Now that he has achieved his dream of winning the title, it will be fascinating to see whether he can smooth out the rough edges and mellow into a truly rounded performer.

His rivals must fervently hope he doesn't...


Career log

Many expected that Hamilton would quietly learn his craft alongside his world champion McLaren team-mate Alonso in his 2007 rookie year, but a spectacular first corner pass of the Spaniard on Lewis’s debut in Australia hinted at the rivalry that was to come.

Consistently impressive performances in the opening rounds and then brilliant back-to-back wins in Canada and America thrust Hamilton into a shock mid-season championship lead, and ignited a bitter feud with Alonso, who felt the team was favouring its long-time protégé.

Hamilton had been a paragon of consistency early on – beginning his F1 career with a staggering nine straight podiums – but he stumbled when it really mattered in the final rounds, sliding embarrassingly into the pit lane gravel in China and then enduring a catalogue of disasters in the Interlagos decider.

All that allowed Kimi Raikkonen to steal the title from him, and Hamilton vowed to come back stronger and wiser in 2008.

It took time for McLaren’s title challenge to get going, but helped by sublime wet-weather wins in Monaco and Britain and an imperious charge from behind at Hockenheim, Hamilton went into the deciding races at the head of the championship.

A headstrong performance at Fuji nearly squandered his lead again, but Hamilton steadied his nerves by dominating in China, and then wrapped up the title in the most dramatic fashion amid the rain and last-gasp shocks of Brazil.


Early years

McLaren had nurtured Hamilton since his sensational karting career, having first been alerted to him when 10-year-old karting star Lewis boldly introduced himself to future boss Ron Dennis at the Autosport Awards by declaring that he would one day be driving for his team!

With McLaren’s support, Hamilton won the Formula Renault UK and Formula 3 Euro Series titles, in each case winning races in his rookie seasons and then blitzing all rivals in his second year – triumphing 15 times on the way to his F3 title.

But he didn’t even bother to have a learning season when he joined the GP2 field in 2006.

Hamilton took five wins and overcame title rival Nelson Piquet Jr to win the championship at his first attempt.

It was the fiery spirit that he displayed on the way to victory that really wowed the F1 paddock, with some epic charges through the field proving that Hamilton had that special extra ingredient that separates the truly great drivers from those who are merely quick, and convincing McLaren that he was ready for the big time.