• German Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton hopes for 2008 repeat

Lewis Hamilton will be keeping a close eye on his rivals in Germany © Getty Images

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• News:
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• News:
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• Race:
• German Grand Prix

• Championship:
• FIA Formula One World Championship

• Drivers:
• Lewis Hamilton

• Teams:
• McLaren

Lewis Hamilton is hoping for a repeat of 2008 when he takes to the Hockenheim circuit for the German Grand Prix.

Hamilton won the German round en route to winning the world championship and enters this year's race on the back of a fine drive to second at the British Grand Prix.

"I won the last race at Hockenheim in 2008 - we had a fantastic car, I got pole position and had a great battle through the field after a mid-race Safety Car to win," said Hamilton. "So I'd really love the same outcome next weekend!

"While there are quite a few low-speed corners that require good traction, I think we'll be on more familiar ground at Hockenheim, and should be able to successfully balance our car to be relatively competitive around there."

Hamilton still leads the drivers' standings from team-mate Jenson Button but he is well aware that the performance gap between the top teams is narrowing and that the weekend will provide a good form guide for the rest of the season.

"The big question mark surrounds some of the other top teams - they've shown improved performance over the past two or three races, even if they've not fully managed to score the results that their pace suggests.

"So it will be interesting to see just how close things have become up at the sharp end, because this could affect the way the world championship plays out, particularly if more teams start challenging for victory in the second half of the season.

"So I think the Santander German Grand Prix will give us a very good read on form for the second half of the season."

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