LEWIS HAMILTON believes he is Formula One's "fighting force" as an enthralling title tussle now heads into the home stretch.
Hamilton was denied a potential Italian Grand Prix win on Sunday by a poor call on the weather from his McLaren strategists in the pits following a stunning first half of the wet race at Monza.
Instead, the 23-year-old claimed seventh, still a cre
ditable result after starting from a miserable 15th on the grid due to making the wrong choice on tyres in qualifying.
That mistake resulted in an all-out charge from Hamilton, despite the miserable conditions, that led to him sitting in second place by the time he made his first pit stop.
The likes of reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen and BMW Sauber drivers Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld were all left in Hamilton's wake as one overtaking move followed another.
The 23-year-old feels he proved he is up for the fight, and with four races remaining, he still has a one-point lead over Ferrari driver Felipe Massa who could only finish sixth from the same grid spot.
"The result was the best we could have hoped for, but it could have been a lot worse," said Hamilton.
"We could have come away with no points and been second in the championship, so to see only a few people in front of me is not so bad, and I feel positive.
"I went forward, no-one overtook me, which is always a nice thing coming out of a race, but then I very rarely do get overtaken.
"At Monza I showed maturity and that I am a fighting force as well."
The full article contains 288 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
