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.”

Grosjean column: Magnussen and THAT crash in Brazil

Chris Medland's 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix preview

FEATURE: Hamilton v Rosberg: 2016 F1 drivers' title permutations

TECHNICAL: Under the skin of the McLaren-Honda MP4-31

2017 driver line-ups so far

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Julien Billiotte

Recent Posts

Formula 1 and teams lock in future with new Concorde Deal

Formula 1’s future has been set in stone, with the announcement that all 11 teams…

5 hours ago

Frustrated FIA implements stricter rear wing tests for Chinese GP

In the wake of mounting frustration over F1 teams pushing the boundaries of aerodynamic regulations,…

6 hours ago

Red faces at Ferrari: Vasseur admits to botched strategy call

Ferrari endured in Melbourne a challenging start to its 2025 F1 campaign, with team principal…

8 hours ago

A picture-perfect St. Patrick's Day!

Bring out your green, for it's St. Patrick's Day, which is all the excuse we…

9 hours ago

F1i's Driver Ratings for the 2025 Australian GP

Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls (Did Not Start): 3/10 Hadjar failed to even get through the…

10 hours ago

Doohan expects more home GPs, despite media speculation

Jack Doohan, despite intense media scrutiny and a crash at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix,…

11 hours ago