God has his hand over me

The Christian racing driver will set his sights on wrestling back the championship lead at the British Grand Prix after falling one point behind Sebastian Vettel following a calamitous weekend for Mercedes in Austria.

Hamilton was given three days off by Mercedes as he prepares to race in front of an expectant 130,000 partisan fans at Silverstone on Sunday.

“Anything can happen any day, but I feel God has his hand over me,” Hamilton, 33, said ahead of his home race.

“Every morning I have breakfast and before I eat, I pray. Every time I eat, actually, I pray. So, whether it’s a couple of seconds, a minute or whatever you are praying for, take that moment.

“I go with a couple of my close friends [to church]. We meet, we go for breakfast and then we go to church together.

“We leave most often feeling enlightened and empowered. Sometimes you leave, and you are like ‘I didn’t get that today’, but most of the time you leave and you are like ‘wow, I know where I am going’.”

Hamilton is in his 12th season and this year is battling it out with Vettel for a fifth world crown.

Only Juan Manuel Fangio (five) and Michael Schumacher (seven) have won the championship more than four times.

Hamilton also surpassed Schumacher’s pole position record in Italy last year, and will become the most successful driver in the history of the…