Hamilton praises himself: 'I did pretty well in most scenarios'

Lewis Hamilton hopes to have the world title in his hands after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. However, it is certainly not the first time that the Mercedes driver has had to fight for the top prize. According to Hamilton, the mindset is an important part of this.

Whereas the Briton used to go on the attack on the track, he has started to drive more defensively in recent years. Hamilton is convinced that this is the only way for a driver to win a world championship because otherwise they risk being without points.

"At the end of the day, you still want to get to the finish line," he explains in conversation with Motorsport.com. "If you're stubborn and stand your ground, you're going to crash anyway. That's why I tried as much as possible to avoid a collision. I think I did pretty well in most scenarios, although of course, you can't always get it right."

Hamilton is getting better at understanding how drivers are put together. "Now that I'm a bit older I can understand their characters better and look at the backgrounds more as well. In the end that is all about education. Our upbringing determines how we behave, good or bad. So that's how I try to understand the character of the person I'm racing with."