Hamilton to 'unleash the beast' in Austin title bid

Lewis Hamilton plans to "unleash the beast" at the United States Grand Prix, where he could be crowned world champion for the fifth time, after winning at Suzuka on Sunday. The Mercedes man was utterly dominant at the Japanese Grand Prix to move within touching distance of the title after Sebastian Vettel crashed out of podium contention.

Vettel may have hoped to put pressure on the Mercedes, having climbed four places to fourth on the opening lap, but a collision with Max Verstappen at an early safety-car restart sent him to the back of the grid.

While Vettel recovered to sixth, Hamilton could be crowned champion even with his rival on the podium next time out.

With Mercedes having found an extra gear in recent weeks, helping Hamilton win six of the last seven races, the Briton wants to keep momentum rolling into Austin, where he has won every year since 2014.

"I loved it. The whole weekend's been incredibly strong from the team," he said of his Suzuka success. "A great one-two shows the team's strength in depth.

Six wins out of seven... ?#JapaneseGP ???????? #F1 pic.twitter.com/BdSYowZUjS — Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) October 7, 2018

"This is the best track in the world. I don't know why they don't make tracks like this any more. Every second of the run was great fun.

"I wasn't able to look after the tyres the way I wanted, so I had to manage them. It's a great feeling. These guys you see at the track and the guys at the factory work so hard to create this beast.

"I'm so proud and grateful I have the chance to do what I do. I've been racing a long time, but that feels like one of the first. I take it one step at a time.

"Each week you have a positive weekend and go to another grand prix and don't know how you're going to perform. But Austin's a good track for us and I can't wait to unleash this beast there."

MORE: How Lewis Hamilton can win the F1 title in Austin
MORE: Vettel blames Verstappen for Japanese GP crash