Hamilton was born to Anthony Hamilton, of Afro-Grenadian descent, and Carmen Larbalestier. His father worked multiple jobs — including as a dishwasher and double glazing salesman — to fund his son's early karting career. Hamilton received a go-kart for Christmas aged six and began competing almost immediately. At age ten he became the youngest winner of the British cadet karting championship, and that same year approached McLaren boss Ron Dennis at the Autosport Awards, telling him he wanted to race for the team one day. Dennis later called Hamilton in 1998 to offer him a place in the McLaren-Mercedes Young Driver Programme — the youngest driver to secure a contract that would lead to a Formula One seat.
Hamilton dominated the 2005 Formula 3 Euro Series with ASM, winning 15 of 20 rounds, then won the GP2 Series at his first attempt in 2006 with ART Grand Prix, earning his Formula One debut at McLaren.
Hamilton's 2007 debut season partnering double world champion Fernando Alonso set multiple records: most consecutive podiums from debut (9), most wins in a debut season (4), and most points in a debut season (109). Inter-team tensions with Alonso culminated in McLaren retaining Hamilton and terminating Alonso's contract. Hamilton led the championship for most of the season before a strategic misfortune at the Chinese Grand Prix saw him finish runner-up to Kimi Raikkonen by a single point.
In 2008 Hamilton won his maiden title in the most dramatic fashion, overtaking Timo Glock at the final corners of the final lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix to clinch fifth position and the championship by one point from Felipe Massa, becoming the then-youngest World Drivers' Champion and the first British champion since Damon Hill in 1996.
Hamilton joined Mercedes for 2013, ending a 15-year association with McLaren. After a transitional first season, the introduction of turbo-hybrid engine regulations in 2014 gave Mercedes an overwhelming advantage. Hamilton won 11 of 19 races in 2014 to claim his second title, and in 2015 won ten races for his third. His rivalry with teammate Nico Rosberg intensified through 2015 and 2016, with Hamilton finishing runner-up in 2016 before Rosberg's shock retirement after the final race. Hamilton subsequently won four more championships: in 2017 and 2018 over Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel, in 2019 largely unchallenged, and in 2020 — during a season significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic — breaking Michael Schumacher's all-time wins record at the Portuguese Grand Prix on his way to equalling Schumacher's record of seven titles.
The 2021 season produced one of the most intense championship battles in the sport's history, with Hamilton and Red Bull's Max Verstappen finishing on equal points at the Abu Dhabi season finale. A late safety car intervention and the race director's decision to allow lapped cars to un-lap themselves allowed Verstappen to pit for fresh tyres and overtake Hamilton on the final lap to claim the title. The FIA subsequently investigated the decision, found it resulted from human error, and removed race director Michael Masi from his post.
Hamilton remained winless in 2022 and 2023 as Mercedes struggled with ground-effect regulations before winning the 2024 British Grand Prix — his ninth at the circuit, a record — and the Belgian Grand Prix in what proved to be his final season with the team. He moved to Ferrari in 2025, won his first Grand Prix for the team at the 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, and is contracted to remain with Ferrari through at least 2027.
Hamilton is regarded as one of the most complete drivers in the sport, excelling in qualifying pace, race management, tyre conservation, and especially wet-weather conditions. His 2008 British Grand Prix victory in heavy rain, by more than a minute from second place, is considered one of the greatest wet-weather performances in Formula One history. He remained unbeaten in wet races from the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix through the 2019 German Grand Prix. Paddy Lowe, formerly of McLaren, noted Hamilton's ability to work with high levels of rear instability that most drivers would find unmanageable, and his natural capacity to match braking input precisely to the rate of downforce loss.
Hamilton has consistently used his platform to advocate for racial justice and diversity in motorsport. He was the first and, as of 2026, only black driver to race in Formula One. He took the knee before every Grand Prix in 2020 in support of Black Lives Matter, and in the same year established The Hamilton Commission with the Royal Academy of Engineering to increase Black representation in motorsport and STEM fields. He founded the charity Mission 44 in 2021, pledging £20 million to support young people from under-represented backgrounds. He was knighted in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to motorsport and named the most influential Black Briton in the 2021 Powerlist.