Whether he is driving brilliantly or too aggressively for his own good, as in last weekend's Japanese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton does not do it on his own. Behind him is the full weight and dedication of the McLaren Mercedes team and a tight family circle who keep his feet on the ground and his mind on the job of racing a Formula One car.

His stepmother, Linda Hamilton, and his half-brother, Nicolas, play supporting roles, as, to a lesser extent, does his mother, Carmen Lockhart. But by far the most influential figure in his life is his father, Anthony, whose counsel is always available and works full-time as his son's manager.

The Hamilton men enjoy an enviably easygoing relationship that seems free of the destructive tension that can undermine a working partnership of parent and child. Under the spotlight of Formula One, which exerts unique sporting, political and celebrity pressures on its superstars, the Hamilton partnership has proved durable and able to withstand the buffeting of a career never far from controversy.

If there are disagreements and episodes of simmering tension, the Hamiltons have been adept at keeping them hidden. In two years, this correspondent has seen only one minor cross word, when Lewis was being asked a leading question at the height of his bitter fallout with Fernando Alonso, his team-mate at McLaren Mercedes last year. The interview was conducted in a huddle with three or four British journalists and Anthony happened to be passing as the question was put. Spotting a trap, he interjected and tried to stop Lewis answering it. “Dad ... Dad, please,” was about the worst of it, as Lewis conveyed his irritation at being interrupted.

You need only a cursory look at Anthony's life to see where the qualities of determination in Lewis come from. In his own way, the father has been almost as successful as the son.

The son of a poor Grenadian immigrant to Britain, he began life working for British Rail (BR) in the IT department before taking night classes in management skills. He pulled himself up the ladder to the point where he was able to leave BR and sell back consultancy services to his former employer as the head of his own company, control of which Anthony has handed over to its 40 or so staff.

Anthony is no-nonsense, ambitious and utterly committed in whatever he does in life. Confronted with a prodigiously talented son, he has made the most of what he found but also managed to avoid the worst pitfalls of the “tennis mum” syndrome. He wants his son to be world champion, but not at all costs and he is likely be the first to spot the moment when Lewis has had enough. Some see a son doing it all for his father; most, more accurately, see a young motor racing driver who lives for the sport he loves and is delighted to please his father along the way.

In the meantime, Anthony has no qualms about exploiting the brand value of Lewis, whose ethnicity, charisma and ability have made him a sporting icon. For Anthony, who scrimped and saved and took on extra jobs to help to pay for his son's karting, Lewis's arrival in Formula One amounts to payback time and why not? So far, after resisting all offers to hand over the management of his son's career to outside professionals, he has done well at maximising his and his son's return. Lewis is earning close to £100million over five years and could take home as much as five times that figure over the next decade.

When you talk to Anthony about Lewis, one thing that stands out is his use of the term “we”. “We are racers,” he will say when explaining a dramatic manoeuvre by Lewis in the heat of battle or the reason why a certain approach to the management side is the right one.

It is a small detail but it offers a sense of the relationship; Lewis's career in Formula One is a joint enterprise and they are making their journey through motor racing's toughest arena hand in hand, sometimes more like brothers than father and son. Lewis is never embarrassed about his father's presence; his father never behaves in a way that might embarrass his 23-year-old son.

This is not to say that the passions do not run high. On several occasions in the past two years, Anthony has been driven to despair by what he sees as the unfair treatment of Lewis, usually by the FIA. He has found media criticism difficult to deal with at times and, at the height of the bitter collapse in relations between Lewis and Alonso, he found it hard to sit on his hands, as any father might. But none of this appears to have caused serious harm to the relationship or its efficacy in supporting Lewis's career.

Anthony has managed to build a solid working relationship with McLaren, a tricky company to deal with at the best of times. He handled Lewis's new contract negotiations early last year and, while he leaves the day-to-day business of racing to the experts in the team, he keeps a close eye on Lewis's media commitments and decisions about appearances and endorsements. There have been moments of tension, especially between Anthony and Ron Dennis, the team principal, but the bond between “Hamilton Inc” and McLaren looks, for now at least, to be strong.

So the father-son team works. Indeed it is hard to imagine Lewis without his father at his side, a presence he regularly reminds us that he is all too grateful for. Shortly after winning his first grand prix, in Canada last year, he said of his father: “I could see him in the crowd while I was on the podium and it looked like he had a tear in his eye. So it's obvious that he was extremely proud.

“You wouldn't believe the amount of work he's put into my career. He had nothing when he was younger. He lost his mum at a young age and just to see his family be successful is a real pleasure to him. I dedicate this race to him.”

Leading Lewis from temptation

Anthony Hamilton on Lewis: “From the start I tried to ensure that Lewis looked after himself and was never in any danger of going off the rails with too much partying and late nights, all the temptations for young kids. I think that honesty and trust played a big, big role in our relationship as Lewis was climbing up the ladder. We've always tried to bring him up to do things right and to understand that positive consequences flow from taking an honest approach to things, whether we were talking about his kart racing or his school work.

“I told him that, if he had any doubts, then he shouldn't do it. But I was also confident that, if he took my advice and listened to what I was telling him, a few years down the road it would all work out for him the way he wanted.”

Lewis Hamilton on Anthony: “From those early days, my Dad has been my manager with Linda [Lewis's stepmother] in full support. It has really been a family team, Nic [his half-brother] included. Occasionally our relationship has been strained by the pressures of motor racing but that is just normal. My Dad has been the motivator and the strength that keeps us all going.

“To be father and manager can be tricky and it is not easy balancing both of those roles. He has done a great job in my eyes. Sometimes, I know I can be very cold and just treat him as a manager, but then I love him to bits for what he is and what he's done for me - and he's my dad! I owe everything to my dad and my family, who have given me so much. I am happy and I have a great life.”