September 19, 2006 was the date the-then 21-year-old Hamilton took to the track in an official F1 test for the first time, at Silverstone in McLaren’s MP4-21. Just 10 days after winning the GP2 title at Monza, Hamilton was handed what effectively amounted to an audition to land a race seat alongside McLaren’s incoming world champion, Fernando Alonso, for 2007.
Having been on the Woking team’s books since the age of 13, Hamilton had briefly driven their F1 car two years before at the British GP venue, but only for 21 laps on the shorter National Circuit as the team also tried out fellow young guns Jamie Green and Alex Lloyd. The three-day group test at Silverstone in September 2006, featuring five other teams and a host of established drivers, was therefore Hamilton’s first shot at the big time.
Hamilton tested alongside Pedro de la Rosa, who at the time was one of McLaren’s two race drivers having replaced Juan-Pablo Montoya earlier that season. The Spanish veteran was also in contention for the 2007 drive, as was the team’s test driver Gary Paffett. Hamilton’s three-day test was therefore a golden opportunity for the rising star, and Ron Dennis protege, to stake his claim.
Although the team had hired Alonso for 2007 more than a year ahead of his arrival from Renault, McLaren had been left with little option but to promote from within for the second seat. The departure of Kimi Raikkonen, who had been with the team since 2002, had been confirmed at Monza when Ferrari announced he would be replacing the retiring Michael Schumacher.
Having given notice of his prodigious talent in both F3 and GP2, Hamilton’s first test was the cover story on that week’s Autosport magazine amid the general feeling that Britain had a future racing superstar on its hands. Hamilton tested alongside Pedro de la Rosa, who at the time was one of McLaren’s two race drivers having replaced Juan-Pablo Montoya earlier that season. The Spanish veteran was also in contention for the 2007 drive, as was the team’s test driver Gary Paffett.
Hamilton’s three-day test was therefore a golden opportunity for the rising star, and Ron Dennis protege, to stake his claim. Although the team had hired Alonso for 2007 more than a year ahead of his arrival from Renault, McLaren had been left with little option but to promote from within for the second seat. The departure of Kimi Raikkonen, who had been with the team since 2002,
had been confirmed at Monza when Ferrari announced he would be replacing the retiring Michael Schumacher. Having given notice of his prodigious talent in both F3 and GP2, Hamilton’s first test was the cover story on that week’s Autosport magazine amid the general feeling that Britain had a future racing superstar on its hands.
