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McLaren clinging onto title race - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton retired from the Hungarian Grand Prix © Getty Images

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Lewis Hamilton believes he and McLaren are hanging onto their title chances "for dear life", after entering the summer break four points down on championship leader Mark Webber.

Hamilton had led the standings since the Canadian Grand Prix but his second retirement of the season in Hungary dropped him to second. His concern is that the McLaren is a long way off the performance of the Red Bull after he qualified 1.7 seconds shy of Sebastian Vettel last weekend.

"If I was to sit here and say I am confident I will win the world championship that would not be right," he told the Daily Telegraph. "But I have to remain optimistic. I have enough in me to win the championship but whether we will have the package to deliver, I can't answer. We just have to keep working. We are hanging on for dear life."

Meanwhile his team-mate Jenson Button has vowed to work even harder to hold onto his championship crown, after a disappointing weekend at Hungary saw him slump to fourth in the drivers' championship.

Button struggled with the balance of his McLaren all weekend and failed to make it to the final session of qualifying for the second time in three races. He benefitted from a safety car period on race day and managed to sneak four points for finishing eighth.

"I am going to work my arse off to make sure we make improvements," he told The Sun. "It is amazing how down you can be after a race like that. I was sulking afterwards but already I feel much better. Unless you get upset about a bad finish like that, what's the point of being here?"

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