Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton is Jonny Wilkinson in a crash helmet. Show him the posts in Brazil on Sunday and he will drive his McLaren through them without blinking. What a weekend in prospect, heroes of track and field heading for a double coronation the like of which we have never seen.

Hamilton is just as dependent on team work as Wilkinson. For England’s forwards, substitute the engineering expertise on the pit wall and in the garage which gives Hamilton the platform from which to strike.

Team McLaren depart for Interlagos with two drivers capable of claiming the world championship. After a season of internecine strife it does not take an astrologer to place Hamilton above Fernando Alonso in the team’s affections. He carries a four-point advantage over his team-mate into the championship denouement at Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix, with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, the third contender seven points back.

However emotionally inclined McLaren might be towards the Briton, Alonso has nothing to fear. If he fails in Brazil he will have only himself to blame, which could easily send him into a spiral of introspection since thus far he has found fault in all quarters at McLaren except his own.

To ensure equality between the drivers, Formula One’s regulatory body, the FIA, have preposterously appointed a special steward to scrutinise McLaren across the weekend. You wonder if the FIA ought not to send a second spook to monitor the first to guard against recurring accusations of impropriety from Spain.

Sir Jackie Stewart, uncowed by the personal attack upon him by FIA president Max Mosley, who may yet have to answer in court for his remarks, dismissed the move as a “poor” decision.

“This is a very dangerous precedent,” Stewart said. “I see this as the intervention of Big Brother, quite extraordinary.”

Hamilton spent last week enjoying the freedom of his Hertfordshire home while the rest of the family hit the tourist trail following the Chinese Grand Prix. Brazil was in soft focus.

A few discussions with his engineer to establish policy for one of the few anti-clockwise circuits, an exercise tune-up to accommodate the unfamiliar demands of turning predominantly left instead of right, a trip to watch the NBA basket- ball game in London and the odd game of pool was the diet of the week.

What a pity we cannot let loose Stephen Hawking on the workings of Hamilton’s inner universe. Were he able to peer inside the mind of the 22-year-old racing phenomenon the good professor would be sure to determine a universal truth or two that might have application for stress management among mortals.

Hamilton’s gaze will fall on nothing but the track in front of him.

He will not waste a second reflecting on what Alonso or Raikkonen might be doing. The ability to filter mental spam is one of Hamilton’s key attributes.

The special scrutineer demanded by the Spanish Motor Sport Federation will be greeted with a handshake and a smile. An offer to do all he can to help will come as standard from Hamilton.

Formula One’s first rookie champion-elect is one race from redefining his sport as impressively as England’s white-shirted No 10.

Both are touched by genius. Each is blessed with a noble spirit. Nothing is won yet, of course. Apart, that is, from the hearts of a nation.