Title will still 'go to the wire' - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton believes the drivers' championship is still likely to "go to the wire" despite being able to secure the title in the United States Grand Prix.

A win for Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel outside the top six will see him wrap up a fourth drivers' championship, and the Briton took another step closer by claiming pole position on Saturday. With Vettel – who will start from second – having retired from two of the last three races, Hamilton still believes Ferrari is likely to prolong the battle until the final round in Abu Dhabi.

"I think It's highly unlikely that will be the case," Hamilton said when asked if he'll win the title on Sunday. "Sebastian did a great job today to bring the Ferrari back up there. Ultimately all I can do is the best I can of my abilities and we have to work as hard as we can to get maximum points.

"Sebastian is right there, so unless he makes a silly mistake, which is unlikely – he's a four-time world champion – then we're going to be seeing it continue on to other races."

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Later asked about the title picture, Hamilton added: "Well, I mean it's a bit like a game of chess. Obviously right now it's 'check' but there's still a long long way to go. There's still a hundred points available. Sebastian and his team are going to be working as hard as they can as are we. Who knows? It's going to go to the wire, I still think.

"In the next four races, I think they are going to give it a great shot and I'm going to do my utmost to try and defend – and not only defend but really maximize and win these races. I want to win these races, that's what I'm working towards and naturally, in winning races, points come and championships are won, so that's what I'm here to do."

While the title situation is now out of his hands, Vettel points to the pace shown by Ferrari in the past three races as evidence that it is realistic to target four consecutive victories to put the pressure back on Hamilton.

"Well, it's pretty straightforward," Vettel said. "I think we have to win and then we see what happens. Obviously we are not in the position that we would like to be but still we have a chance, so we go for that.

"We have the car – we had the car to win the last three races, didn't happen, so I don't see why the next four races we shouldn't have the package to win, so we start tomorrow."