Brazilian Grand Prix

Venue: Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace Dates: 13-15 November Coverage: Live TV, radio and text coverage of the race.

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It has not been the most conventional of build-ups to a grand prix weekend for me, as you may have read by now.

It has been an eventful time since the Mexican race two weeks ago, and I ended up getting quite run down.

Following the race weekend in Mexico City, I stayed over there working for another four days. Then, when I got back to the UK at the end of last week, I was stressed trying to organise my mum's 60th birthday last Saturday.

The party turned out great, and we had so much fun, but by the end of it I was exhausted. I had been busy for two solid weeks and I basically collapsed.

I ended up back in Monaco on Monday with a fever and we decided to delay my arrival in Brazil by a day to give me more time to sort myself out.

I've slept a lot the last couple of days and I feel much fresher now. I've had some good medication and I feel I am now on the upward slope and I will be fine for this weekend's race at Interlagos.

Saying thanks to my mum

I really wanted to put a lot of effort into my mum's birthday. Turning 60 is a major landmark in life and I can never thank her enough for what she has done for me. This was one small way of doing that.

She was a single mother bringing up three kids and she gave up everything for me - as did my dad, of course.

She is such a selfless person, and had never really had anything done for her. So I wanted to give her the most amazing birthday, just to show her how special she is.

Lewis Hamilton threw his mother a surprise 60th birthday party

I flew in people that we hadn't seen for 20 years. There was something like 120 people at a place we hired in London. I had a friend organise the venue. I've never done anything like that before.

I had loads of my friends there. I had a load of really cool people sending video messages, which we played before the party, and then Jessie J got on stage to sing, among other people.

It was stressful for everyone involved getting ready but it was so well worth it - Mum looked like she had a whale of a time.

No problems at Mercedes

If you were watching the Mexico race, you'll know that during it I had questioned my Mercedes team's decision to make a second pit stop for tyres.

We discussed it afterwards. Not because there was anything particularly to be resolved but just to go through what we were all thinking at the time.

Obviously, I'm a racing driver and I have the right to question decisions that are taken during the race.

The thinking behind the stop was that we were far enough ahead to have basically a 'free' pit stop for both cars. And making that stop took away any risks with the tyres potentially not making the distance, and meant we were safe if there was a safety car - as indeed there was, as it turned out.

Hamilton visited Mexico's Black Jaguar White Tiger Foundation

It was absolutely the right thing for the team to do, to take away as many risks as possible of us not finishing one-two.

Once they had stopped my team-mate Nico Rosberg, they had to stop me because otherwise it would have disadvantaged him.

The team told me we were stopping for safety reasons - by which they meant they did not know at that time if the tyres would make it to the end of the race, based on what they had seen in the first stint.

Of course I understood that. But I knew that my tyres would make it to the end. That's where I was coming from; that I didn't need to stop. And it turns out that the tyres were absolutely fine and could have made it easily.

Media playback is not supported on this device Hamilton joins greats with third title

There was no argument at all. I sat with Paddy Lowe, our technical boss, and he asked me what my thinking had been.

I told him I was a racer, that he knows me well - we have basically worked together all my career as he was at McLaren with me and we both joined Mercedes at the same time in 2013.

We've had an amazing year. There have hardly been any instances of me questioning the pit calls, and I was like: "Let's just move on."

I know the team make decisions for the right reasons, and that's the way it will continue to be.

Not worried about Rosberg's run

Nico did a really good job to win that race, and he did it after scoring his fourth consecutive pole position.

I'm not worried about that run. I don't see it as a pattern; it's just the way things have worked out at the individual races.

I've had a great run in qualifying this year and you can't get it right all the time. It's no big deal.

Having said that, of course qualifying is important and naturally I want to get pole this weekend at Interlagos.

I've only been on pole once here - in 2012 - and it has not been a great circuit for me so far.

I like it, it's just that I've very rarely had the car to win here.

In my first two years with McLaren, the Ferrari was always better here. Then from 2009-13, Red Bull had an amazing run at this race.

Nico Rosberg (right) has beaten Hamilton to pole at four successive races

I was finally in the lead here in the wet in 2012, and I should have won, but I got taken out by Nico Hulkenberg's Force India while I was in the lead.

And then last year I was quicker than Nico Rosberg in the race, and it would have been close between us had I not spun on the lap before one of my stops while I was trying to make up the time to pass him.

It's annoying that it has worked out like that here because it is a track I have always wanted to win at.

When I was a kid, I used to play a game called Grand Prix Two. Interlagos was always the first race of the season on that and I never really got much past the second race.

I would always restart the season, so I always seemed to be doing Interlagos - it was a real pain!

It also has extra meaning because there is there connection between this place and Ayrton Senna, and the race is so atmospheric, always packed out with so many really enthusiastic fans.

But it took a long time for Ayrton to win here - it took him eight years before he managed it. This is my ninth attempt, so hopefully I can finally get it done this weekend.

You can follow Hamilton on Twitter @lewishamilton and via his Facebook page, and you see exclusive content on his website www.lewishamilton.com

Lewis Hamilton was talking to BBC Sport's Andrew Benson