F1 has never had anyone like me - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton says he is unlike any driver Formula 1 has seen before and reaffirmed a determination to keep racing into his mid-forties.

The seven-time world champion recently said he wanted to continue in the sport to fulfil a dream of racing in Africa, having campaigned for a Grand Prix there for many years.

F1 has signed a 10-year deal with the central-east African country of Rwanda starting in the early 2030s which will be a first race on the continent since 1993.

The Briton said F1 had "never had anyone like me in the 70 years" of the sport and he felt like he was "built differently".

Hamilton will be at least 45 when that race takes place - the same age as Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso, who is continuing in F1 next year - but he told a news conference before this weekend's Mexico Grand Prix that he should be considered a special case.

"Of course there are challenges up ahead that I can't foresee that come with age. But along this journey there have been so many pre-conceived ideas like that your reaction time drops off," he said.

"Did you see my reaction time in the last race? It was faster than some of the youngest people here.

"As long as you are willing to sacrifice everything, which I am right now – I can't say in four years whether I will want to continue doing what I'm doing – but I am still all in. I will be for the foreseeable future."

Alonso turns 46 next summer, and hinted when he announced his new contract last month that he is likely to continue for at least another season beyond that.

Hamilton is battling to finish second in the drivers' championship this season.

The Ferrari driver is in a fight with four other drivers to end the season behind runaway leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes, who is 21 years Hamilton's junior.

Antonelli is poised to clinch his first world title this weekend in Mexico City, while there are just 31 points separating Mercedes' George Russell in second from McLaren's Lando Norris in sixth.

Hamilton is third, one point behind Russell, five ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen and eight ahead of the other Ferrari driver, Charles Leclerc.

Hamilton struggled during his first season with Ferrari, but has enjoyed a much more positive campaign this time around including victory in the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in June.

Hamilton said he has proven that he can still compete at the highest level.

"Time will tell whether I'm here in the 2030s. I never want to overstay my welcome in the sense of not having the performance," he added.

"I don't want to be driving around with that having really dropped off.

"Everyone assumed that last year and I have proved everyone wrong. I'll continue to try to do so."

More on this story