Hamilton

Sakhir: Lewis Hamilton is on the verge of setting Formula One history.

No driver — not Michael Schumacher nor Fernando Alonso, or any of the other drivers in the series dating back to 1950 — has ever started his F1 career with three consecutive finishes in the top three.

Hamilton, a 22-year-old Briton in his rookie season with McLaren-Mercedes and F1’s first black driver, has surprised many by finishing third in Australia and second in Malaysia.

The last driver to take two F1 podium finishes in his first two races was Britain’s Peter Arundell in 1964. However Arundell, after thirds in Monaco and the Netherlands, overheated his car at the Belgian GP and came in ninth.

Schumacher started with a clutch problem in his first race for Jordan in the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix. Alonso began his career in a Minardi with a 12th at the 2001 Australian GP behind a Schumacher win.

Hamilton lost out to Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen in the first two races.

Alonso has won the last two driver’s world titles and Raikkonen has finished second twice.

“I really didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t think I would be here twice on the podium already in the first two races and still in contention with these two guys,” Hamilton said of Alonso and Raikkonen. “I think it is difficult to go into a season and to predict what is going to happen or to know what to expect.”

Hamilton has experienced the Bahrain track before, having tested in February and raced in F3 in 2004. (AP)