Damon Hill on Britain's F1 hopefuls

As Britain's most recent world champion, Damon Hill is uniquely qualified to talk about the prospects for the UK's four representatives in the 2007 Formula 1 season.

In the decade since Damon's triumph there has been little to cheer for Britain's drivers bar the odd race win for David Coulthard and now Jenson Button - so why is everyone so excited about this season? At the Autosport International Racing Car Show in Birmingham, Damon explained why.

"This year has to be the best chance of finding a British world champion since then," he said.

There are two guys in particular who are well-placed, that's Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton. Up to 30 per cent of the grid could be British this year and we've got two guys in very competitive positions."

Can Jenson make the step from race winner to potential world champion?

"He's proved he can win a grand prix. I have great belief in Jenson. I think he's a much stronger driver than he appears to be.

"He's established himself within the Honda team and he has the whole team around him, so you can compare his position quite well with that of Michael Schumacher at Ferrari. If that can happen, and he can start the season competitively in the top three, he's got a very good chance of winning on a regular basis."

Lewis Hamilton is of course making his grand prix debut after demolishing the opposition in GP2, and Damon is confident that he can make a big impact in Formula 1.

"He's obviously a very exciting prospect, and has a very real, plausible chance of a first grand prix win. I think Lewis has a proven track record of being a winner in GP2, and he's been well coached and guided by a very professional team in McLaren and Ron Dennis.

"The first season is the toughest. He must try to be on the heels of Alonso, his confidence will grow and grow. He probably has a season's grace, at least part - people will give him the leeway and the benefit of the doubt for the first six months.

"But then, at the end of the season, if he hasn't outpaced Fernando at one point or another, people will be saying 'Where is it? Where's that spark?' It's fair to say that Alonso won't be underestimating him."