Lewis Hamilton says winning a fourth Formula One world title would not make him better than boyhood hero Ayrton Senna, the Brazilian whose death as a triple champion in 1994 rocked the sport. The Briton has already exceeded Senna’s career tally of race wins, podiums and pole positions and success in Mexico tomorrow would make him only the fifth driver to claim four championships.
“Ayrton’s life was cut short and I think had he the opportunity to continue and race in safe conditions he would have continued to win more championships,” the Briton told reporters on Thursday.
Senna was 34 when he died in the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. “I don’t look upon him and think that I am better because I have more wins and championships and poles, but I feel very proud for my name to be mentioned alongside his name and that’s all.”
Hamilton, who grew up idolising Senna, will become the first Briton to win four championships and is also by far the most successful in terms of race wins.
He has already taken seven times world champion Michael Schumacher’s records for most pole positions and front row starts and is now 29 wins away from equalling the German’s all-time record of 91 victories. Some believe he could one day match Schumacher’s championships.
Unlike former teammate Nico Rosberg, who won last year’s title and promptly retired, Hamilton could be around for some time yet. “I can easily imagine myself without Formula One, but it is not about that right now,” he said. “There are some really cool things coming along that are going to complement where I am in Formula One.”
He would not give any further details about that, but said he had been in meetings in Los Angeles earlier this week to discuss “some creations” he had been working on. “I definitely won’t be here at 40. I don’t think that is going to happen. It changes all the time,” added the 32-year-old. “There have been times where I thought I am happy to move on but you can’t come back. I can’t tell you how long I will be here for, but eventually I will figure it out and know when the time comes. I anticipate a couple more years at least.”
Hamilton said he had come a long way since his first title with McLaren nine years ago. “In 2008 I was a kid, I had all the natural talent I have today but I didn’t have the knowledge experience,” he said.
“I’m much better equipped than I was in 2008. It’s actually been more enjoyable this year being in the position I am. A lot more comfortable in my own skin.”

Hamilton open to having Ricciardo as a teammate
Hamilton said he would be happy to partner Daniel Ricciardo at Mercedes one day but the Australian should keep his focus firmly on staying ahead of Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen.
Ricciardo will be out of contract at the end of next season and said recently that he would love to partner Hamilton, who is set to become a four-times Formula One world champion in Mexico this weekend. Finland’s Valtteri Bottas currently has a contract at Mercedes for 2018.
Asked about Ricciardo’s comments, Hamilton told reporters that he did not mind who he raced against but rated the Australian highly. “I have already raced against the best and in my personal opinion that’s Fernando (Alonso),” he said.
“Daniel has a great driver in his teammate so he has to really work to make sure that he continues to out-perform him, you have to beat the person you are with first before you can look at competing against someone else and beating them. But Daniel is a fantastic driver and it would be a privilege to race against him. He is a great character, he brings a lot of positivity to his team.”
Ricciardo and Verstappen have both won this season, with the Australian fourth on 192 points and his 20-year-old Dutch teammate sixth on 123. Verstappen has suffered more reliability issues, however. Hamilton said Bottas was also a great teammate, who had brought a more relaxed atmosphere to the team after the departure of now-retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg. Hamilton and Rosberg had a notoriously frosty relationship with both battling for the title.
“There are a lot of great drivers here that I would be happy to race against,” said Hamilton. “As long as somehow you are able to maintain positivity in the team, hopefully you are fighting another team and that harmony is incredibly important for everyone to enjoy what they do,” he added.
Ferrari’s Vettel, Ricciardo’s former Red Bull teammate, indicated he would also be happy to pair up again with the Australian. Ferrari are also likely to have a vacancy in 2019, with Kimi Raikkonen’s contract ending next year.
Both Verstappen and Vettel are confirmed at their respective teams through 2020. “I like Daniel,” said Vettel. “Obviously for next year things are sorted, and then... it depends always on what’s going on but in the end it’s not my choice.”