Proud Lewis Hamilton not worried about complacency on Formula One title run-in

The British driver will head to Austin, Texas, a venue where he is unbeaten since 2013, in the knowledge that another victory, and failure from his fallen rival Sebastian Vettel to finish in the top two, will secure his title fate on Sunday, October 21.

After securing his sixth win in seven rounds at the Japanese Grand Prix to move 67 points clear of Ferrari’s Vettel with just 100 to play for, the Englishman was refusing to get carried away.

“It is very easy for me not to do that because I am very strict on not being complacent,” he said.

“There are 100 points available and we have to keep doing the job until the last chequered flag.”

Hamilton entered the final two rounds of his debut season in 2007 with an almost unassailable championship lead over Kimi Raikkonen, only to fall a point short of glory.

He added: “From past experiences, so much can happen so our focus will be on extracting as much from the car as we can because we can always improve.”

While Vettel’s demise has virtually cleared the path for Hamilton to cruise to the championship, nothing should be taken away from the Mercedes driver’s performances in recent races.

Hamilton’s title defence got off to a slow start, but he has been in the form of his life during a run which has exposed both Vettel’s and Ferrari’s weaknesses.

“The championship is a marathon and not a sprint,” said the Briton. “I feel very proud of our performance. We stayed on course with our plan and we have continued to deliver.”