McLaren

Bring on the rain, says McLaren

McLaren CEO Martin Whitmarsh reckons his team's speed in wet weather conditions could prove to be the key factor in this year's title battle.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa is now just one point behind McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, but while the Ferrari has struggled to generate tyre temperature in the rain - leaving drivers Massa and Kimi Raikkonen floundering - Hamilton took crushing wet weather wins in Monaco and Britain, and showed outstanding pace in the rain-hit Spa and Monza races.

With nothing to choose between McLaren and Ferrari in the dry, but with rain a strong possibility at all the four remaining grands prix, Whitmarsh is counting on more stunning wet weather performances from Hamilton.

"Last year, we felt the performance differential to our chief rivals was decidedly more marked - there were some circuits where we were clearly ahead, and others where we lacked race-winning pace," he said.

"Given that this year has shown both Ferrari and ourselves to be remarkably evenly-matched, the performance of MP4-23 in unusual weather conditions could prove decisive.

"Looking ahead, while Singapore is something of an unknown quantity, I think we’ve all experienced wet races in Japan, China and Brazil so we feel well prepared.

"And allied to Lewis’s fearsome abilities in the rain, we have every reason to feel confident that we’ll be ready to capitalise on any untoward conditions."

The only wet weather blip for Hamilton so far this year came in Monza qualifying, where a gamble on intermediate tyres left him 15th on the grid.

He still had a shot at victory after charging through the field in the race, until a change in the weather forced an additional stop for tyres and relegated him to seventh.

"I have no problems with it raining again, but I'm going to do my best to make sure we're strong in Q3 for all four remaining races if that is the case," said Hamilton.

"I don't want another weekend like last weekend, that's for sure."

Whitmarsh agreed that it was now vital to avoid errors and maximise every opportunity.

"I think this world championship will boil down to whichever team and driver makes the fewest mistakes from now on," he said.

"It’s about preparing the cars with immaculate reliability, running them responsibly and not taking any unnecessary risks."

Hamilton flew through the field in the Monza rain

No more mistakes, vows Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton has admitted that he can't afford any more mistakes in the final sprint for the championship title.

An errant tyre choice in qualifying at Monza last weekend restricted the McLaren driver to 15th on the grid, from where he could only progress to seventh in the race - although had more rain arrived when the team hoped, Hamilton could have pulled off a sensational victory.

With his advantage over title rival Felipe Massa now down to just one point, Lewis said it was vital to have an error-free run in the remaining four races."You've got to be smart in what you're doing," Hamilton told BBC Sport.

"We've got to make sure we collect points and don't make silly mistakes, which is very easy to do, but you've just got to make sure you prepare in the right way."There are some drivers who are having more problems than us.

"I think the reason I'm in the lead is because I've probably had similar results to other people, but perhaps slightly less mistakes."But for sure, I can't afford any more."

Hamilton said he was still keen to race for victories, but admitted that finishing ahead of Massa at each grand prix now had to be the priority.

"Obviously you're out there to beat all your rivals, so I've got to beat him all the time, and now that he's my closest rival - just one point behind me - he's the guy I need to make sure I finish ahead of," he said.

"It's not easy: he's in a very good car and he's a very good driver, but also we have a good car and we have a great team, and I'm also not too shabby...

"I feel confident in my abilities, confident in my package and the team."That doesn't necessarily mean I'm sitting here saying 'we're going to win the world championship', but we're in a good position to do so and I think I'm stronger than ever."

Last year Hamilton went into the final four rounds three points ahead of his then-team-mate Fernando Alonso and 18 clear of eventual champion Kimi Raikkonen, but saw his advantage dwindle away after crashing out in China and suffering a technical problem in Brazil.

But he feels he is much better prepared for a title showdown this season and vowed not to stumble at the final hurdle again."Last year I went into these races, I didn't know the circuits, it was my first time there, I was travelling a long, long way away and had to get myself into shape for the weekend with different kinds of pressure," said Hamilton.

"This time I've experienced it before, it's not going to be a shock to the system."Having already done a season in Formula 1 I think it's prepared me for this year."So for the last four races I feel a lot more comfortable in what I have to do, but it's going to be very tough."

Hamilton is determined not to lose the title at the last gasp again