A jubilant Lewis Hamilton revealed he was taking inspiration from his hero Ayrton Senna after his win in the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday. The victory was of great importance in this season’s Formula One world championship, with the British driver moving 28 points ahead of his title rival, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, after the German went out of the race following a crash off the grid going into the first corner.

Hamilton had to endure tricky, wet conditions under the lights at the Marina Bay circuit in a race that required skill and control as the track dried and which was interrupted repeatedly by the safety car. His Mercedes did not have the pace of the Ferraris and Red Bulls over the weekend but the three-times world champion has always excelled in the wet and made the most of his opportunity after the first lap incident to take advantage. He was reminded, he explained, of when Senna crashed out while comfortably leading the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton wins Singapore Grand Prix after Sebastian Vettel crashes out Read more

“I could have easily just binned it,” he said. “Every now and then Senna pops into my mind. The Monaco Grand Prix where he was obviously in the lead and hit the wall, that always comes in and reminds me not to do that. I’ve had experiences like that but I learnt that lesson. That always just comes in and reminds me in the back of my mind. It’s almost like he talks to me, just stay focused, keep it together.”

Hamilton had started from fifth on the grid after a difficult weekend for Mercedes, whose car struggled on the high-downforce circuit. However, after Vettel and his team-mate, Kimi Raikkonen, came together with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen at the start and all three were knocked out, Hamilton took the lead and did not relinquish it.

The win is a huge result for the British driver. He had come into the race three points ahead of Vettel in a season that has ebbed and flowed between the two drivers from the off. He has seven wins to Vettel’s four but the latter has led the title race at all but the last round in Monza when Hamilton’s win put him on top. However, Hamilton had expected to drop points to the German in Singapore. To leave with a greater advantage and only six races remaining was more than he could have expected.

Hamilton acknowledged how well it had gone. “Today couldn’t be a more perfect scenario for us. I definitely won’t change anything. Because it’s working. Whatever it is with the approach that I have, there’s no reason to change it. It’s a perfect balance of being aggressive and cautious at the same time. The formula works at the moment, so I’ll just continue with it.”