Lifestory published at the age of 22??

[Wizzo]

His first season as an F1 driver may not yet be over but already the biographers have started to put together Lewis Hamilton's life story. The 22-year-old from Stevenage, who came fifth in the Turkish Grand Prix last weekend, is the subject of a new book and DVD.

The book, Lewis Hamilton: A Dream Comes True, is written by sports author Brian Belton and will be published on Tuesday, September 11. It charts the driver's career from his early life in Stevenage to his record-breaking first season in F1. Included in it are details of his first girlfriend, Rachel Butterfield, who met Lewis at John Henry Newman School in Stevenage. According to the book, Rachel is two years Lewis' junior and started dating him when she was 16.

Their relationship lasted four months and according to the book, Rachel revealed details of it in a recent kiss and tell interview, in which she shared "fond and erotic memories" of Lewis' Mini Cooper.

However, the book does not have the official sanction of Lewis' F1 team, McLaren.
A McLaren spokesman said: "It's not an authorised biography and has had no participation from anybody at McLaren."

A separate company has put together the DVD about Lewis, entitled Life In The Fast Line.

The company behind the project admit it is "100 per cent unofficial" but says the disc contains exclusive interviews with his friends, family, motor sport competitors, trainers and driving coach.

It is due to be released on Monday, October 15.

As well as being the subject of two biographies, Lewis is quickly following in the footsteps of other sports stars like David Beckham by appearing in advertising campaigns. He can currently be seen advertising Tag Heuer watches, Vodafone and Abbey National.

[Alianora La Canta]

There are several more biographies of Lewis in the pipeline (three are aiming for the Christmas market - type "Lewis Hamilton" in at the Amazon website for the latest updates), so I'd wait for them to come out before committing to buying one. One of the biographies makes the hilarious prediction that Lewis will win the championship at the Japanese GP in October. Apparently nobody remembered to tell the author that the Japanese GP is on September 30 this year, and three races follow it...