Lewis Hamilton admits Jenson Button has a hold of him

Former Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton has reportedly told his Mclaren team mate Jenson Button that he probably has his number on the racing track.

The candid admission came after another hard day's night as he was agonisingly pipped for pole under the Abu Dhabi floodlights by record-equalling double world champion Sebastian Vettel.

As Sir Paul McCartney watched qualifying from the McLaren garage, Hamilton saw Jenson Button beign given the ticket to ride that he needed to become the first team-mate to beat his fellow Briton in Formula One.

Button was edged into third spot by just 0.009 seconds by Hamilton, but needs just a podium finish to ensure he finishes ahead in the championship standings this season.

The Daily Mail quoted Hamilton, who trails Button by 38 points, as saying “I'll accept it if Jenson finishes ahead of me, but it's not impossible to close that gap in the next two races. If it changes the position, that will be fantastic, but if it doesn't it's not the end of the world.”

He added: “The worst case would be if one of us was still able to win the world championship, then one of us would be affected by it, but we're not.”