'In terms of my overall package, there are no excuses,' the 22-year-old British driver said of his title aspirations, which begin on March 16 with the Australian Grand Prix.

'Last year, the only excuse was that I was a rookie and that it was all new. But this year, I'll continue to learn, so sure, there will always be mistakes but I don't feel there is any room for error.'

He is coming off a spectacular rookie season. The sport's first black driver won four races to finish with 109 points, one fewer than champion Kimi Raikkonen after a three-way duel that included former teammate Fernando Alonso.

Hamilton slid off the track on the first lap at the Brazilian Grand Prix before suffering a gearbox problem. It probably cost him the chance of becoming the first rookie to win the drivers' championship.

He has no regrets, though.

'Having those experiences just builds you up and makes you a stronger person,' he told The Associated Press following a day of winter testing in Valencia.

'Last year, even I was surprised by how consistent I was and how few mistakes I made.

'But this year, I have no doubts. I know I'm going to be better prepared. I'm already better prepared. And I think we have a better package this year.'

He prefers the team's policy of not naming a No1 driver, even though he feels he has assumed Alonso's place - physically, too, in the garage - going into 2008.

'No, I don't feel like the natural leader,' he said. 'I think I established myself as equal last year.

'I just like fairness and I want Heikki Kovalainen to have the exact same opportunities and, if he does and I beat him, there's the reward. I beat him on same tyres, same engine and knowing all that, you just know you're a better driver.

'I don't want any advantage, any head start.'

The competitive Briton's results ruffled Alonso last year. The Spaniard had arrived at McLaren as a two-time defending champion and had expected to be treated as such, only to be eclipsed by a rookie.

'I think I established myself as equal last year,' Hamilton said. 'He was the leader at the beginning, wasn't he, but it changed. Well, he thought he was at the beginning. But I don't think that should be the case, we should be a team. It should be equal.'

Alonso felt the British team were giving Hamilton preferential treatment. This was borne out towards the end of the season, when team principal Ron Dennis' gaffe made headlines around the world.

After Hamilton had skidded out of the Chinese Grand Prix, Dennis inadvertently told reporters that 'we weren't racing Kimi, we were basically racing Fernando'.

Alonso has since rejoined his former team, Renault.

'He showed me just how not to behave as an F1 driver,' Hamilton said, adding that he hoped he would act more professionally than the Spaniard if put in the same situation as a reigning world champion working with a rookie teammate.

Despite the tension, he said he was able to learn from Alonso inside the cockpit - from managing tyres and braking and accelerating out of corners.

Does Hamilton have to win this year to fulfil his promise?

'I don't know, I've never really thought about it,' he said.

'I just strive for excellence, always. I don't say that I have to be this, that I have to be that by this time, but I want to be world champion this year. You have to be in the right place at the right time, everything has to go the right way and you have to be in the right frame of mind.'

He will drive for McLaren through 2012 after the team announced a five-year extension to his current deal earlier this month.

'Now I have myself fully established in the team and I see they have the confidence in me to see me through another five years, which is great,' he said. 'I feel in the right place, you know.'

ASSOCIATED PRESS