Hamilton was clocked driving at 120mph

F1 star Lewis Hamilton has been banned from driving in France after being caught speeding on a motorway.

The McLaren driver was caught by police speeding at 120mph in the northern town of Laon on Sunday behind the wheel of a Mercedes – 40mph over the speed limit.

A spokesman for McLaren said: “We were made aware that Lewis was stopped for speeding in France whilst driving in a private capacity.

“We understand he has received a suspension from driving in France for one month.”

The 22-year-old was issued with a £429 fine and police confiscated his car.

A police spokesperson noted Lewis Hamilton was “polite and co-operative”.

The British Formula One star shot to fame this year in his debut F1 season, finishing second in the championship.

And Lewis Hamilton has seen a considerable share of controversy this year.

McLaren were accused of viewing confidential documents from Ferrari, while Hamilton himself became caught up in a feud with fellow McLaren driver Fernando Alonso. Alonso has since left the McLaren team and signed with Renault for the 2008 F1 season.

But despite the controversy and demands of Formula One, Lewis Hamilton still found time to appear on Top Gear – narrowly missing out on beating The Stig and F1 legend Nigel Mansell.

And Lewis Hamilton finished second once again, as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award was given to the undisputed super middleweight champion of the world, Joe Calzaghe. Hamilton came in second ahead of welterweight hero Ricky Hatton.