The Master's Apprentice

Ron Dennis is a happy man right now. Vodafone is safely on board, a significant chunk of equity has been sold to Bahrain, the financial picture is bright - and the new car looks pretty good.

But most of all he's excited about the new McLaren driver line-up.

Perhaps not since he did the impossible and squeezed Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost into the same team has he been so convinced that he's got the best possible combination available - and the fact that he has personally supervised the schooling of one of these drivers gives him extra satisfaction. We've seen teams bring on young drivers before, but nobody has started as early as Ron did with Lewis Hamilton.

"I would say that the combination of all four drivers, but specifically Fernando and Lewis, is just a dream," he beamed last week. "It's fun. My motivation has been significantly influenced by the enthusiasm that they've brought to their own goals. You've got two guys that really want to succeed.

"I can put my mind back to when I started in the early eighties with my involvement with McLaren. The drivers weren't so far off my age, so the relationship was very much brotherly. Now it's almost grandfather or nephew, and certainly father/son. And of course it's just a joy.

"I think we have a very strong driver line-up. It goes without saying that to have a twice world champion is a huge asset to the team, and his approach and commitment is phenomenal.

"Lewis has really exceeded all our expectations in testing. His race pace over long distances, his physical condition, his psychological approach, and his spirit is great, so we're delighted, as we are with Pedro and Gary. It's a fantastic, free-spirited team that is fun to be around."

In recent times Ron's driver signings have been conducted like covert military operations whose outcomes have caused some surprise. Kimi Raikkonen was a season into a three-year deal with Sauber and not obviously on the market when Dennis pounced with a big cheque. The Finn was using a Ferrari engine and the Italian team was keeping a close eye on what was going on at Sauber, but any thoughts Jean Todt had about recruiting Raikkonen had to be put on hold.

Hamilton at the 1997 Autosport Awards © LAT

Juan Pablo Montoya still had a season and a half to go on his Williams deal when McLaren picked up on his heated radio conversation with the team at Magny-Cours. Sensing the Colombian's frustrations, Dennis quickly made an offer that JPM couldn't refuse, a year before you'd expect such a negotiation to take place.

And then there was Alonso. Ron revealed last year that discussions in effect started at the very moment of Fernando's title triumph in Brazil in 2005, when prior to the podium ceremony he made it clear that he would be happy to have Fernando on board sometime. A few weeks later, the deal was done, to the considerable frustration of Renault and embarrassment of Flavio Briatore.

All those hirings must have given Ron considerable pleasure, not least because as well as getting the man he wanted, at the same time he upset a rival team. All part of the game.

But Lewis is different. This time he hasn't had to steal someone else's superstar - he's helped to create one of his own. Ron himself has described his decade-long grooming process as an experiment, and the world is waiting to see how it will ultimately turn out.

In total contrast to the headline-grabbing deals outlined above, there has been a gentle inevitability about Hamilton's march towards a McLaren race seat. During last season the only question appeared to be whether he would go straight in or would test during 2007 and arrive the following year as a fully rounded race driver.

Both routes had their positives and negatives, as Dennis always insisted. Even to the end of the season he gave the impression that there was still a lot to think about, but in his mind Lewis was ready. The deal was done on September 23, and for three more race weekends we listened to Ron vehemently denying that the decision had been made. The clues were there to be read, however; in China he revealed that the team would enter 2007 with a new philosophy of helping people to achieve their dreams, and somehow that didn't gel with the thought of Pedro de la Rosa getting another year in the race seat.

In effect Ron now says that his cautious approach was as much for those in and around the team as for the media.

"In the decision making process I really had to, not stand out of it, but not be the person that was pushing, because I'd put the 10 years in and I had a view that he was ready," said Ron. "While it's true to say that ultimately it's my decision, I wanted it to be everybody else's decision first.

Lewis Hamilton qualifying for the GP2 race at Magny-Cours © LAT

"When we took the decision, there were still reservations. But then his last three tests were really sensational. He's going to have a lot of pressure, he's going to make mistakes, but he's going to be a credit to our team and he's going to be a credit to F1 as well.

"He understands the role he's got to play in keeping the heat out of his career, which all the media is intent in putting into it. That's what I like, his professionalism and his calmness, and his youthful enthusiasm. And he's slightly overawed by it all. That's great. They could come with a cocky swagger, but there's no swagger to him. It's just I'm here. It's great, so refreshing.'

Ron's enthusiasm is shared by everyone else in the camp, not least Martin Whitmarsh, who has a key influence on driver decisions and has been even closer to Hamilton's day-to-day career than Dennis.

"We know him as a lad in the factory, and he spends a tremendous amount of time at MTC," he said. "He's just growing in stature by the month, really. He's doing a fantastic job. He's so fit, he's trying so hard to be the fittest driver in Melbourne!

"There's no doubt that he's got driving talent, anyone who's watched a GP2 race knows that. But the job that he did in the winter testing was just impressive as well. There's a tremendous amount of pressure he's going to be under. I don't think he shows any signs of it, he's got so much self-belief and confidence."

If there was one criticism Lewis was subjected to last year, it was that his qualifying performances rarely matched his awesome race form (although equally a so-so grid position gave him a chance to show off his overtaking skills). Whitmarsh says that's not an area that worries the team or has been a special focus in testing.

"We haven't done too much," he explained. "We could have spent a bit of time during the testing, but with the limited number of tyres that we had, and the limited amount of time, it's a balance. Getting the best out of the tyres is something that the great drivers learn pretty quickly, so we'll see how he gets on.

"It's difficult to analyse what happened to GP2, but speaking to Frederic Vasseur, at ART, he would say that they as a team hadn't cracked getting the best out of the team and doing qualifying laps. So how much of that was the driver, and how much was the team, we'll see.

"I don't think it will be a problem. Lewis is inherently a bloody quick driver, and therefore he'll get the hang of it. To do any decent qualifying simulations, generally you need reasonably good track temperatures, which we haven't got anyway. I think you'll have a look in Bahrain [testing] doing proper development work."

Lewis Hamilton testing the McLaren MP4-21 Mercedes at Jerez © LAT

Refreshingly, the man himself still has his feet on the ground. He admits that he still finds it difficult to grasp that the ambition he expressed to Ron at the Autosport Awards all those years ago has been realised.

"It's always been said that I'm a McLaren protege," he said. "I've been with McLaren for quite a few years now so I'm used to that sort of thing, but it's quite weird to see the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, race driver. It's difficult to get used to!

"Because I've been with the team for such a long time I do know quite a few of the guys there. In terms of gelling with the team we hit the ground running. In terms of learning as much about the car, I'm a hard worker, I enjoy knuckling down and really getting on with the job, and struggling through the whole process to improve the car. It's quite new to me, developing a car. I've never had to do that before.

"Before you just get in the car that's already prepared, and do the best job you can with it. It's quite a good experience, and I'm really excited to get out in the new car, because I know I helped develop it. I go to the wind tunnel about two or three times a week to see the progress that's being made, knowing that some of the bits are things that I've tested."

Lewis says he has no problem with the media attention he's now getting: "I'm quite comfortable with it. When you're in the lower categories it's almost like an apprenticeship or internship. You're going through these sorts of experiences to prepare you for F1, so I don't see it any different. I like it. Personally, I don't see it as stressful or anything."

What really matters is what happens in the car. At the end of last year, runs at Silverstone and Jerez gave the team the final confirmation that Lewis was ready - but far more important was what happened after he got the job. In November/December he had eight solid days at Jerez and Barcelona, with the focus not on proving a point or impressing anyone, but totally on furthering his education as a race driver.

"The post-season testing was really so important in terms of my development," he said when I asked him about the value of that running. "I think a lot of people, especially outside F1, don't realise how much work you need to do to get on top of an F1 car.

"There's so much to learn on the technical side, seeing how much development is being put in at the workshop, how many people are working non-stop. And then at the track [you learn] not to waste your time, to really maximise all the time you have, not throwing the car off the track. It's been quite hard to take all of that in and then just execute a good test day.

Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton at the McLaren launch © XPB/LAT

"I think the first two at Silverstone and Jerez were just OK, I don't think they were special days, they weren't days when you'd say I'm mega quick. But I was expecting that. This is the pinnacle of the sport and if you were to get in and go quick straight away then you are either ridiculously special, or it's easy.

"And it's not easy. It's taken some time to get on top of the car. When you start driving an F1 car it's almost like it drives you around, so you are fighting it the whole way. And when you get used to it, you come to learn and control the car, so then you become a part of it and then you drive the car. I'm at that level now..."

Of course, whatever level Lewis is at will be reflected in a direct comparison with Alonso. Typically he sees nothing but positives.

"My goals this season are to learn as much as I can from the team and also from Fernando," he added. "I think he's going to bring a lot to the team. You always have to have a strong teammate, and he's the strongest teammate I could have. In terms of me comparing my data alongside his, learning how he deals with the press, with life, and on the track is going to be quite important in terms of my progress.

"Obviously he is very, very competitive. I just believe that I'm one of the most competitive people there is, so I think, for sure, we're both going to have that quality in common. We seem to get on very well. He's very easy to get on with and I think I am, so we seem to gel quite well."

It's going to be a fantastic contest, and team insiders are as intrigued as we are to see how things will unfold.

"It's quite an interesting pairing that we've got, with a proven product in Fernando alongside someone who's raring to beat him, like Lewis," said Whitmarsh. "At the moment Lewis has got a huge amount of respect for Fernando, and I think Fernando is already recognising that there's a pretty quick youngster in the car alongside him as well.

"I think that will grow very quickly. They're both good communicators, open and straightforward. Things can go wrong as we know, but I think they are a pretty uncomplicated couple of chaps who want to get the job done - and I think that's very encouraging."

Martin also let slip an aside that perhaps reveals how the management really see the situation. "Winning a championship with Fernando would be a reasonable way to start the relationship," he said. "And in a year or two [for him to] hand over to Lewis would be the right trend..."