Hamilton - pressure? what pressure?

[Wizzo]

Lewis Hamilton is adamant that the pressure is not getting to him in the wake of his meteoric rise in Formula One.

"I don't find the pressure is on me. We're going there (to Monaco) with a very good car and a very good chance of winning. It's the one I am pushing for" - Lewis Hamilton The 22-year-old McLaren racer is the youngest driver ever to lead the World Drivers' Championship standings having finished up a third-place finish on his debut in Australia with three successive second places.

He goes into this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix two points clear of nearest challenger, team-mate Fernando Alonso, but is refusing to be fazed by the growing attention.

Hamilton said: "I don't find the pressure is on me. We're going there (to Monaco) with a very good car and a very good chance of winning. It's the one I am pushing for."

The Briton has won on his last two visits to the Monte Carlo street circuit, taking the honours en route to last year's GP2 title and again the year before in the Formula 3 Euroseries.

And he added as he looks to maintain his unblemished record of podium finishes: "I don't plan to change the results I've had there in the past. I hope to continue with them at one of the best circuits of the year. There is nowhere like it for getting the adrenaline going."

Despite his success with McLaren in the opening four races of the year, Hamilton is only too aware that Ferrari are quicker at present with Felipe Massa winning the last two races in Bahrain and Spain.

He said: "In qualifying we've good pace over one lap, but they seem to be a little more consistent, a little faster on the long stints.

"But the team are working very hard, and the car was much better over the weekend of the Spanish Grand Prix. We have made a good step forward and I think the gap has closed, but they still have an edge."