For motorsport fans in the UK, the British Grand Prix is the most important date on the racing calendar, and with question marks over the event's long-term future [see separate story – click here], the 2008 edition this weekend could just be the last of a dying breed.

On the back of a brace of frustrating and ultimately fruitless outings in Montreal and Magny-Cours – failures to score that have cost him the world championship lead – Lewis Hamilton arrives at Silverstone with a point to prove, and a memory to efface.

This time twelve months ago, he pulled a sublime last-gasp lap out of the bag in qualifying to stick his McLaren-Mercedes on pole position around the Northants circuit by barely a tenth of a second, but a misguided strategy and poor balance in the race – the legacy of having failed to test in the week leading up to the grand prix – saw the young Briton fall back to a distant and disappointed third place at the chequered flag.

Not only has the 23-year-old made no such similar mistake a year on, but he indeed blitzed the final day of the group test at Silverstone last week, with no other driver capable of getting within seven tenths of his time, proving that he means business in no uncertain terms.

Team-mate Heikki Kovalainen has also signalled his intent to challenge for the top step of the rostrum this weekend, having finally got his season back on-track again by charging through the pack from a penalised tenth place on the starting grid in the French Grand Prix just under a fortnight ago to cross the finish line fourth. The young Finn impressed at Silverstone last season by seeing off infinitely more experienced Renault team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella to collect two points for seventh position, though he will be hoping for a rather loftier result twelve months on.

Standing in McLaren's way, however, are world championship pace-setters Ferrari, who courtesy of Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen have wrapped up five of the opening eight grands prix of the campaign to the Silver Arrows' two, both of which were delivered by Hamilton.

Whilst Massa has yet to finish higher than fifth in five previous outings at Silverstone, his 2007 result came from the very back of the grid following qualifying woes, and the Brazilian will doubtless be keen to preserve his advantage in the drivers' standings this time around.

Normally phlegmatic team-mate Raikkonen, for his part, has confessed to feeling 'nostalgic' when he visits the former airfield [see separate story – click here], scene of past successes for the Finn in both Formula Renault and, last year, F1. He too is sure to mount a strong challenge, on the back of failures to score in both Monaco and Montreal, and a lost victory at Magny-Cours when his exhaust pipe came loose, allowing Massa past to steal the win – and with it the championship lead.

Behind Ferrari and McLaren, BMW expect themselves to be in no-man's-land, unable to challenge the leading two teams – as was the case in France – but equally far enough ahead of the chasing pack to have the status of 'third-best' all to themselves. Canadian winner Robert Kubica can as usual be relied upon to drag every last inch of performance out of the Munich and Hinwil-based outfit's F1.08, and will be ready to pounce on even so much as the slightest error from any of the drivers ahead.