Lewis Hamilton says backing up Formula One title rival Nico Rosberg so he comes under pressure from the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is neither “easy”, nor “wise”.
Trailing his Mercedes team-mate by 12 points ahead of the season finale, Hamilton needs to put several cars between him and Rosberg to win a fourth world championship.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner declared on Wednesday that the Briton would be “smart” to try and hold up the points leader so others can overtake him.
“I was only just made aware of what Christian had said,” Hamilton said in response to Horner’s remarks in Thursday’s FIA press conference.
“Nico has been on pole here for the last two years here, he has been very quick. This has been a relatively strong circuit for me, but [I was] not delivering the last two years, so my sole goal is to do so.”
The 31-year-old also claims he would take more pride in outshining Rosberg comprehensively, as he did at the previous round in Brazil.
“In terms of tactics in the race, that has to come on Sunday, that has never been my thought process. If I am ahead, I want to be as far ahead as possible,” Hamilton added
“When you have a 20-30 seconds' lead, that is as painful a blow as you can give to the guy you are fighting.
“If you look at last race [at Interlagos] with no red flag, I would be 30 seconds ahead. That is more of an achievement than backing up your teammate.
“While here it sounds like it makes sense, it is not very practical to do. You have two long DRS zones, it wouldn’t be easy or wise to do so.”
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