McClaren testing Lewis Hamilton's car next week

The car Lewis Hamilton will drive as he defends his Formula One world title will be unveiled on Friday.

McLaren are scheduled to launch the new Mercedes-powered MP4-24 at their base in Surrey at 1045 GMT.

It is the third 2009 car to be unveiled after Ferrari and Toyota's new models broke cover earlier this week.

All have been designed to conform to the biggest set of F1 rule changes in 25 years, which are aimed at improving racing and making overtaking easier.

Hamilton will attend a news conference at the state-of-the-art McLaren Technology Centre in Woking along with Finnish team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, test drivers Pedro de la Rosa of Spain and Englishman Gary Paffett and team bosses Ron Dennis, Martin Whitmarsh and Norbert Haug of Mercedes-Benz.

Hamilton, 24, won last year's title by a single point from Brazilian Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, who has already had a day testing his team's new car.

McLaren will join Ferrari, Renault, Williams and Toyota - whose car was unveiled on Thursday - at the new Algarve circuit in Portugal next week.


It is the first of a series of critical tests before the start of the new season in Melbourne, Australia on 29 March.

Renault, fourth last year, and Williams both launch their cars at that test on Monday, while BMW Sauber - third overall in 2008 - have chosen the Valencia track in Spain for the first public appearance of their new model.

The Algarve test will be the first time Hamilton has driven an F1 car at speed since clinching the title and becoming F1's youngest ever champion in Brazil last November.

He has done a handful of publicity appearances and other engagements since then but has spent much of his time having a break from F1 with his girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger, singer with pop group the Pussycat Dolls.

Following the unveiling of the Ferrari in Italy on Monday, much attention will be paid to how the McLaren compares.

New rules have forced modifications which lower and widen the front wing, and demand a tall, narrow rear wing.

Slick, untreaded tyres will also be reintroduced after 11 years on grooved tyres, and teams have the option of employing a kinetic energy recovery system (Kers).

The Kers system stores energy that would otherwise be wasted as heat during braking, then reapplies it during acceleration to provide a boost in power, controlled from the cockpit by the driver.