Hamilton expects Ferrari to remain strong through final six F1 races

Lewis Hamilton remains wary of the threat Ferrari will pose through the final six races of the 2017 Formula 1 season as he goes in search of a fourth drivers' title.

Hamilton took his seventh win of the season for Mercedes in Singapore last weekend, moving into a 28-point lead over Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel at the top of the drivers' championship in the process.

With Mercedes and Ferrari evenly-matched for most of the season so far, the momentum is expected to swing through the closing races depending on which car is better suited to each circuit.

While Hamilton has faith in Mercedes' strength at tracks such as Sepang and COTA, the Briton is confident Ferrari will remain a potent threat until the very end of the season.

“We have Malaysia, where we should be OK. Japan could be close, Red Bull is very, very strong at that circuit," Hamilton said.

"Austin will be fine and then Mexico, I don’t know. I think Brazil will be a place where these guys are particularly strong. Ferrari will be very strong.

"Honestly, I think it’s going to be very close in the next races. It’s hard to predict. When you go to Mexico for example and you put your maximum downforce on, because it’s so high and you want to reduce drag, then maybe the cars with more downforce on will just have the edge.

"But we will find out by the time we get there."

Should Hamilton win the next race in Malaysia and Vettel not finish second, he would be able to clinch a fourth world title by finishing second in all of the following five rounds.