Coming off his brilliant triumph in Austin, Lewis Hamilton says winning the season finale in Brazil would be the perfect ending to his long stint with the McLaren team.
The British driver will leave McLaren at the end of the year to join rival Mercedes, putting an end to a relationship that started when he was competing in karting. Hamilton says he is especially eager to finish the 2012 season on top once again on what will be an emotional weekend for him.
"Brazil has been the scene of some epic races for me during my time at McLaren and, for many reasons, this weekend will be a very big race for me," Hamilton said. "As my final race behind the wheel of a McLaren, I vow to the whole team that I'll give it my all on every single lap."
"My win in Austin last week was one of the races of my life, and I'd love to take victory in Brazil this weekend to give the team the perfect farewell present," he added. "I nearly won the title here in 2007, clinched it on the final turn in '08 and drove like crazy to finish on the podium in '09. But I've never won: and that's what I'll be aiming to do this time around."
Team boss Martin Whitmarsh is convinced McLaren has the car to win in Brazil following its Austin success.
"I think our win in Austin last weekend has buoyed the team after a couple of disappointing races, and has shown that, in terms of raw speed, the MP4-27 wants for nothing," he said. "That's an encouraging message to be sending home to our engineers and designers for the winter, and also a positive for our drivers, who know that they'll likely be equipped with race-winning machinery for the Interlagos weekend."