Former Top Gear and The Grand Tour executive producer Andy Wilman has revealed that Lewis Hamilton personally overruled McLaren boss Ron Dennis to appear in the BBC show's "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" segment in the famous and humble Suzuki Liana instead of a Mercedes supercar.

Speaking on the Midweek F1 podcast, Wilman explained that the seven-time champion's first visit to the Dunsfold test track came straight off the back of his rookie Formula 1 season, in which he missed the championship win by just a single point.

“Well, the first time he came down, I think it was when he just lost that rookie season, the championship by [one point],” Wilman said. “So McLaren is still Ron Dennis days, so we're getting all Ron Dennis-ish-ness coming down the phone, like 'he's in a

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