McLaren formed one of the most exciting line-ups in Formula 1 history in 2007 when they paired a rookie Lewis Hamilton with Fernando Alonso. Despite only lasting a single season, it will never be forgotten.

Hamilton produced one of the great GP2/F2 seasons in 2006, scoring 14 podiums in 21 races. That marked him out as motorsport’s next superstar.

Alonso had already reached that status after back-to-back world championships with Renault. The Spaniard had signed the McLaren deal before he won the second of those titles.

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It was a brand new partnership for Ron Dennis as Kimi Raikkonen joined rivals Ferrari and Juan Pablo Montoya left F1 to race in the United States. McLaren were still chasing their first silverware of the 21st century.

Fernando Alonso earned 34 times Lewis Hamilton’s salary at McLaren in 2007

According to former McLaren team coordinator Jo Ramirez, who had left at the end of 2001, many in Spain were adamant that the team preferred Hamilton. He was the ‘favourite child’ of Dennis after progressing through the junior ladder with the backing of the team boss.

Even while he was still a McLaren driver, Alonso publicly stated that Hamilton, as an English driver at an English team, was receiving all the support. They ultimately finished level on points as Raikkonen mounted the greatest comeback ever to snatch the title.

However, Ramirez says the salary gulf between the two drivers disproves the favouritism allegations. Hamilton was apparently earning just three percent of Alonso’s salary.

“When they had Hamilton and Alonso, they always believed here in Spain that they gave preference to Hamilton, being English and being the favourite child of Ron Dennis,” Ramirez explained. “He sponsored him all the way until he arrived in Formula 1.

“Of course, people believed that they favoured Hamilton. But how were they going to favour Hamilton when they paid him £350k and Alonso was paid £12m? It didn’t work, it wasn’t right.”

Fernando Alonso underestimated Lewis Hamilton at McLaren

Ramirez reckons that Alonso saw Hamilton as the ‘perfect’ partner at first. He perhaps expected to take control of the team given the youngster’s inexperience.

But Hamilton scored a debut podium in Australia and outpaced Alonso in just his third race in Bahrain. He was starting to show that he was a ‘very special’ talent.

“Alonso never thought Hamilton would be a phenomenon,” Ramirez recalled. “He thought, ‘Hamilton is going to be my partner – a perfect rookie’. He accepted him with open arms. When they started racing, he realised that Hamilton was very special.”

In a recent interview, Eric Boullier suggested Hamilton is in the same position as Alonso at Ferrari. Teammate Charles Leclerc is a true child of Maranello, having come through the academy.

Ironically, there’s a suggestion that Leclerc is upset about Hamilton’s salary, which is substantially larger when bonuses are included. That isn’t reflective on performances on track so far.