The Drivers
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Jenson Button
Lewis Hamilton
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Drivers
Jenson Button
Born 19/1/80, Frome, UK.
Jenson was barely 20 when he got his F1TM break with the Williams team in 2000. His mixture of youthful enthusiasm, raw talent and pop star looks instantly endeared him to the public, but it was to be six years before he found himself in a car capable of winning grands prix. After that memorable first win at Hungary in 2006, his Honda team took a wrong turn in technical development and Jenson endured two frustrating seasons before Honda decided to withdraw from the sport.
The story of Jenson's 2009 season has all the qualities of a fairytale. After a management buyout his team made it to the grid, thanks in part to an engine supply offered by Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. Jenson won the first grand prix of the year from pole position and took five more wins on his way to the drivers' championship. Declaring himself ready for a fresh challenge, Jenson joined Vodafone McLaren Mercedes for the 2010 season.
Lewis Hamilton
Born 7/1/85, Stevenage, UK
Some drivers get their opportunities through luck, others through hard work. Lewis demonstrated his prodigious talents in karting but had to fight for every break. At the age of 10 he introduced himself to McLaren Group CEO Ron Dennis at the Autosport Awards, saying, “I’m going to drive for you one day.”
Dennis admits that he was initially skeptical, but three years and several karting championships later, Lewis had done enough to earn a place on McLaren’s coveted driver development program. The team supported him through international karting and into Formula 3, giving him a test in a McLaren F1TM car at Silverstone in 2004.
Lewis continued to impress. In 2006 he won the GP2 Series at the first attempt, vividly demonstrating to the watching F1TM team bosses that he was ready to step up.
He joined Vodafone McLaren Mercedes for the 2007 Formula 1TM season in a blaze of publicity, and his results instantly justified all the expectation: third in his debut grand prix, he finished on the podium 12 times (including four wins) and missed out on the drivers’ title by a single point.
In 2008 he went one better, winning five grands prix – including the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim – to become the youngest F1TM World Champion ever.
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