Lewis Hamilton has claimed he is feeling “stronger than ever” as he creeps nearer to a fifth Formula 1 championship in 2018.
With victories in four of the last five races, the Briton holds a 40-point lead over main rival Sebastian Vettel with some believing the pressure is already starting to show on the German.
As he has continually stated, however, Hamilton is not about to start becoming complacent even though it is his Mercedes team that currently appear in the ascendency.
“I don’t think you ever have one hand on it [the championship], you either have both hands on it or you don’t,” he said in Sochi.
“There’s still a long way to go, a lot of points available. Six races are still a lot of races, it’s a long season.
“We’re really just head down, everyone’s working incredibly hard to continue to improve the car.
“We’re going to be faced with different challenges as we come to these different races, so the job is still exactly the same. The target is still exactly the same and the approach is still exactly the same.”
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The 33-year-old also feels he has made personal progress in how he balances his hectic off-track lifestyle with staying in peak physical and mental condition.
“I feel healthy, happier and stronger than ever,” Hamilton said. “It still feels like it has been a long year.
“But I have had plenty of time to myself and some really good quality time with family. I also got to see some beautiful places and get some good training in, too, so I do feel really good for this last stint.
“First and foremost, I am a racing driver. I am also trying to grow into an entrepreneur and a businessman and be successful in business, but one who drives the socks off his car.”
At the Russian Grand Prix on Friday, the Mercedes driver once again led the way finishing the day half a second clear of Vettel.
“We’ve brought more upgrades this weekend; there’s so much work going on at home,” Lewis revealed.
“It’s just really encouraging when you come to a race and you get an upgrade, knowing that this late in the season we’re also already working on next year’s car – it motivates me to get the best out of everything.”
The four-time world champion is also keen to put two poor years behind him at this race, which has seen him beaten by his teammate on both occasions.
“Sochi has been one of the weaker circuits for me in the past, particularly last year,” he admitted.
“I’ve done a lot of work to understand the balance and see where I can improve to try and rectify this – today has been good in that sense.
“From every race we’re learning more and more and particularly the last few races have helped us to really gauge which foot we need to start on for the weekend.
“It’s been a good day for us, so let’s hope that it continues tomorrow.”