Hamilton motivated by Schumacher records - Prost

Alain Prost believes the chance to match, and possibly surpass, Michael Schumacher's title record in Formula 1 will prevent Lewis Hamilton from losing motivation in the years to come.

Hamilton has secured a sixth world drivers' title in 2019, moving beyond Juan Manuel Fangio and into outright second place on F1's all-time list, with only Schumacher, on seven, ahead.

Having taken four world championships in his career, Prost says he had no thoughts of matching then-record holder Fangio, the Frenchman having retired immediately after securing his final title in 1993.

However, with Hamilton within striking distance of Schumacher's two most fearsome benchmarks – seven titles and 91 grand prix wins – Prost believes a dose of F1 immortality will spur the Mercedes star on.

"When I became a four-time champion, it was not my goal to match Fangio, but I can well understand that it [matching Schumacher] can be a motivation for him. It is good for him, good for the sport," Prost told Motorsport.com of Hamilton.

"At the moment he is driving with a lot of experience and expertise. We therefore see that he can manage not only a race, but also an entire season.

"I have never been able to experience what it is like to be a six-time world champion, but sometimes you can lose motivation if you have won two, three or four times. What then is your next goal?

"So right now it's good that he has a goal to achieve. Moreover, he has a seat with the best team in F1. It will be interesting to see what he does with it."

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