World champion Lewis Hamilton was surprised that his mentor Ron Dennis had decided to step away from Formula One but said the former McLaren team principal would always play a part in his life.

With the team in turmoil after being found guilty of misleading the stewards at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Dennis announced yesterday that he would no longer play any part in the Formula One operation.

"I wasn't disappointed, I was surprised. I hadn't heard about it, I was just as surprised as the rest of the team," he told reporters at the Chinese Grand Prix today.

Dennis has mentored Hamilton since the driver was 13 years old, transforming him from a confident young karter into the youngest Formula One world champion. Hamilton, however, has been clearly disgruntled since the incident in Melbourne and his relationship with Dennis was rumoured to be on the rocks.

"Ron has been a huge force in supporting my life and he's still playing a key role in my life, whether or not he's in the team or not," the 24-year-old said.

"You guys have been writing about it for years, as soon as he gets to a certain stage, he'll step aside. I guess he's decided that time is now."

NEW BEGINNING

Hamilton has been struggling on the track this season but topped the times in the first practice today before fading to 13th fastest in the quicker second session.

He rejected the idea, however, that Dennis's departure might be a new beginning for the team.

"I don't think we've made any new start or anything, we're still working on the car trying to improve it," he said.

"Today it was a slight step forward but we've got a lot more to do... It's the same as always, the guys are enthusiastic and determined to get back to the top." The team face severe sanctions at a World Motor Sport Council meeting later this month and some have suggested that Dennis's departure might improve relations with the sport's authorities.

"That's nothing to do with me, my job is to concentrate on racing," Hamilton added.

Hamilton said he had not spoken to Dennis since the announcement but would at some stage, before presenting a straight bat to a question about whether the decision would make a difference to him seeing out his contract with McLaren.

"I'm contracted to the team and I'm happy where I am," he said.