Mercedes driver could match Brazilian legend's records for race victories and consecutive pole positions this weekend in Singapore
Tuesday 22 September 2015 09:35, UK
Lewis Hamilton says he is humbled at being compared to Ayrton Senna as he closes in on matching a raft of his boyhood hero's F1 records.
Hamilton will draw level with Senna for race victories if he prevails at Singapore while another pole position would match the Brazilian's all-time record for successive poles in F1.
Of even greater value would be a third world championship, which Hamilton, 53 points ahead with seven races remaining, is poised to secure to equal Senna's career haul.
"Since I was a boy I have always wanted to emulate Ayrton and be as similar to him as l could – whilst still being myself," Hamilton told Sky Sports News HQ. "I've always wanted to drive a car like he could or handle a car like he could.
"It's quite surreal to think that 20 years later l am fighting for a similar number of podiums or championships, but we have to remember that if he continued he would have won many more. But l feel proud to be in terms of results to be similar to such a great."
Hamilton has been in the form of his life in 2015, thrashing team-mate Nico Rosberg 11-1 in qualifying and winning seven races. His triumph at last week's Italian GP was as emphatic as it was complete: with a winning margin measured at 25 seconds, Hamilton's victory completed only the second 'Grand Slam' of his F1 career as he led every lap from pole position before setting the race's fastest lap and taking the chequered flag first.
Just don't tell him that he must be tiring of such relentless domination.
"People must think when they are watching that it must get boring but it really doesn't," said Hamilton. "You are always faced with a challenge and you are always pushing yourself to get better. It's pretty much impossible to get the perfect lap so you are always chasing the perfect lap and every Sunday feels different – you wake up on the wrong side of bed, your mood or your energy levels feel different, and you never know what is going to happen in a race. Every win has felt like it is the first time.
"A thousand people help me achieve what we achieve. While I get to stand on the podium I only do so as a representative of a huge group of people. I'm very lucky to have worked with so many great people throughout my career in F1. I've won a race in every year I've been in F1 and that's what l live to do.
"The last couple years have been the best of my life."
