Debate: can Lewis be as good as Michael Schumacher? | Simon Barnes on Hamilton's risk | 2008 race-by-race | Hamilton's win in his own words | Graphic: the most thrilling championship finish ever?

It was painful to watch and it was not secure until the closing stages of the final lap of a dramatic Brazilian Grand Prix, but Lewis Hamilton made it by the skin of his teeth yesterday to become Britain’s ninth Formula One world champion and the first since Damon Hill in 1996.

Hamilton left his fans gasping for air after he and his McLaren Mercedes team almost wrecked a championship-winning drive with a last-minute tactical decision that left him running one place from glory at the beginning of the 71st and final lap.

But Hamilton kept his nerve in the rain before a packed house at Interlagos and overtook Timo Glock’s Toyota almost within sight of the finish line to write his name into motorsport history. The 23-year-old had become Formula One’s youngest champion and only the second man to win the title in his second season.

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After starting fourth and finishing fifth, which gave him the championship by one point from his Ferrari rival, Felipe Massa, who won the race only to see his dreams shattered by Hamilton’s last-gasp effort, the British driver returned to a hero’s welcome in the McLaren hospitality area. There to hug him were his girlfriend, Nicole Scherzinger, the American pop star, his half-brother, Nic, and his step-mother, Linda.

However, it was not until he sat down in the arms of his father and manager, Anthony, that the realisation hit him. Britain’s newest sporting sensation, who is already a multi-millionaire resident in Geneva, Switzerland, remained motionless for several minutes, trying to regain his composure, as he sought to come to terms with what he had achieved in the final seconds of the final race of a season that has tested his character and his nerve to the limit.

“It’s absolutely fantastic, an amazing achievement and one of the most troubled days,” he said as the celebrations got under way. “It was such a hard race and I’m ecstatic, very emotional, very thankful for my team and my family and everyone who has supported me.

“It’s been so hard here in Brazil because everyone has been rooting for Felipe, who did a fantastic job — and congratulations to him. I was silent in the car the whole time. I was very much under control for 90 per cent of the race; the last 10 per cent was really the hardest.

“Straight from the beginning of the race I sat back and I just kept my position. I didn’t attack anyone and was just looking after my car. It was great not to have to push and to try to come second or something like that. I was in a good position but then towards the end it got harder and harder, but it was a good championship.”

Among those in the paddock to salute him was Niki Lauda, the triple world champion, who said he had no doubt that Hamilton was a deserving winner. “He was absolutely perfect and did nothing wrong, especially at the beginning of the race,” Lauda said. “I honestly don’t care who wins as long as it is the best and Hamilton this year, to the end, was the best.”

Massa, who looked devastated to have won his home grand prix but to have lost out on the bigger prize, was gracious in defeat. “We finished in the front and we have to be very proud of that,” he said. “Unfortunately we missed one point, but that’s racing.”

“We need to be proud of our job and our race and our championship. I know how to win and I know how to lose. It is one more day of my life and we are going to learn a lot with this day. That’s the way it is, but for sure I am very emotional.”