Hamilton says he has not reached his peak as F1 season begins

Reigning Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes on Thursday said he has not reached his "peak" as a driver ahead of the season's curtain raiser in Melbourne.

The 33-year-old Britisher, who has four world championships (2008, 2014, 2015 and 2017) to his name, and is vying for a fifth title this year, was speaking at the official press conference before the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, reports Efe.

"I'm sure there is a peak for a driver when it gets harder to reach the fitness level that we do today. When your interest starts to decline, when your drive starts to decline, I guess that's when you're over your peak.

"But I definitely don't feel I'm that. I'm definitely in a good range now and that's where I need to continue, to extract the most from it," Hamilton said.

He said it was a privilege to be in Formula One, having witnessed the sport's progress over recent seasons and competing with the best drivers such as Germany's Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), another four-time champion sitting alongside him on Thursday.

"It's been a great experience to be able to race against Sebastian, he's got the four World titles, (...) I think this is an exciting year for Formula One fans, being that we have two four-time World Champions battling it out," said Hamilton, although he added that the Red Bull team was also capable of springing a surprise.

Hamilton said he was not thinking about reaching the record set by Argentina's Juan Manuel Fangio - who won five F1 titles in the 50s -- but was focusing on winning races and trying to reach his full potential.

--IANS

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