In the nail - biting Brazilian Grand Prix of November 2008, Lewis Hamilton clinched his position as the youngest - ever winner of the Formula One World Championship. He is a truly remarkable sporting figure who, from his humble upbringing on a council estate in Stevenage, has gone on to dominate and revolutionise the world of motor racing. But Hamilton's rise through the motor racing ranks, from karting to the hotly contested F3 Superprix and onto the F1 podium, has not been straightforward. Lewis' racing career began aged just six, when his father, holding down three jobs to support his son's blossoming success, bought him his first go - kart. The breakthrough came when a ten - year - old Lewis met McLaren boss Ron Dennis at an awards ceremony. Lewis told him, 'I'm going to race for you one day...I'm going to race for McLaren.'Sure enough, two years later he was signed to McLaren's development programme.