Not in pole position for once, but certainly revving up among the leaders, along with the likes of Roger Bannister, Sebastian Coe, Bobby Moore, Fred Perry, Chris Hoy, Andy Murray, Steve Redgrave, Jonny Wilkinson, Ian Botham, Bobby Charlton et al.

Yet will the name of Britain's currently most consistently successful sportsman ever be linked to that exalted company? By his peers, perhaps, but not necessarily the public.

The five-times Formula One champion should be a shoo-in to win the 2018 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, but at the moment he is in the slipstream of Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas, England football captain Harry Kane and world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in the betting odds.

He may not have helped his cause by already announcing that he is unlikely to attend the awards ceremony in Birmingham next month, when the shortlist will be revealed, as he will probably be at his winter training base in Colorado.

The sad truth is that despite being one of the all-time greats of his, and indeed any sport, he has never been truly appreciated in his own country.

His record now stands supreme as one of just three drivers to win five World Championships. His nearest British compatriots are Jackie Stewart on three and Graham Hill and Jim Clark on two.

Hamilton's apparent lack of popularity is puzzling considering the nation has warmly embraced even less successful Grand Prix forerunners such as Nigel Mansell, Hill and James Hunt.

Is this because back home they think it is all down to the car, the phenomenal Mercedes AMG Petronas and not the driver? Is it the hi-tech and not the man at the wheel?

Some say all he needs to do is point it towards the finishing line and let the technology do the rest.

I am no motorsport buff but I do think this a simplistic view.

The Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, has said that without Hamilton they would not have enjoyed the remarkable success that culminated in a record-equalling fifth Constructors' Championship at the Brazilian Grand Prix. Hamilton's win at Interlagos, having already secured his fifth drivers' title, ensured Mercedes continued their complete dominance as a manufacturer, where they are unbeaten since the turbo-hybrid era began in 2014.

Since then, the team has won five consecutive drivers' and constructors' doubles. Hamilton has four with Nico Rosberg taking one in 2016.

Victory in Brazil ensured they have equalled Ferrari's record, achieved with Michael Schumacher between 2000 and 2004. One more Constructors' Championship will match Ferrari's six, the Scuderia having also taken the team title in 2009.

Hamilton joined Mercedes in 2013, the same year as Wolff, and since 2014 has won 50 of his 99 races, an average of 10 per season. Wolff recognised how crucial he had been. 

"He is an exceptional driver and an unbelievable human and he has been an integral part of the team," he told The Guardian. "He is the one in the forefront and in the car. Many people have contributed to the success but clearly it wouldn't have happened without him."

Hamilton has proved himself the master of his craft, the best since another five-times winner, the legendary Argentinean ace Juan Manuel Fangio, and surely deserves not only respect, but adulation as one of the finest sporting practitioners of this or any generation.

As one of his rare media admirers has pointed out, if the Sports Personality of the Year award is a yardstick of public affection, Hamilton has won fewer than either Damon Hill or Nigel Mansell. Hill and Mansell have a single World Championship each, but four awards between them.

Hamilton has nearly the opposite: five drivers' titles and one award. In tennis terms, he's Greg Rusedski, also one award, as opposed to twice-Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, who has three.

Is it because the Monaco-based Hamilton lives as a tax exile? Well, so do others, including Mansell and Paula Radcliffe, and so did Mo Farah.

More significantly, maybe it is because he may be too suave and remote, lacking the sort of fan-friendly charisma of a David Beckham, Daley Thompson or Frank Bruno?

Whatever, it may be time we learned to love Lewis Hamilton a little more, not just because of who he is but what he has accomplished.

Just as we did Andy Murray when our apathy turned to acclamation once he started winning.

And I say that as someone who thinks Formula One is a turn-off and dreads the day should we ever have an Olympic Grand Prix.