Lewis Hamilton says he will help his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas to overhaul Sebastian Vettel in the Drivers' Standings if he is asked to do so by his team.
Bottas is just 15 points adrift of second-placed Vettel in the standings with two races remaining and 50 points still up for grabs. The Finn has said his aim is to finish second to Hamilton now the title is decided.
Whilst Hamilton is keen to win the final two races and doesn't believe Mercedes would ask him to sacrifice his results to help Bottas, he says he would be willing to do so if they requested it of him.
"I don’t think they are going to ask," he told the official F1 website. "Valtteri wants to get it on merit. He has been working hard throughout the year and is focused more than ever, so I know he wants to do it on his own.
"But if the team asks me, then for sure! As I said before, my mentality for the last two races is to win – and I have not been told otherwise."
In response to being asked if backing off mentally now the championship is decided is an option, Hamilton said the opposite was true and that he wanted to apply even more pressure to his rivals.
"No, nothing has changed. There are still two races to go!
"I am still in the same mental frame of mind that there are still races to be ticked off. It wouldn’t feel normal to back off at this moment.
"It is the best time ever to apply even more pressure – just because I can. There are still two wins available."
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