Lewis Hamilton admits he is beginning to feel the pressure as the Formula One World Championship reaches its conclusion.

The Briton was severely criticised for his performance at the Japanese Grand Prix, where he had the chance to strengthen his lead in the drivers' standings and move closer to becoming the youngest world champion in his sport's history.

Instead, the 23-year-old attempted a rash maneouvre that cost him a place on the podium and resulted in his championship lead over Ferrari's Felipe Massa being cut to five points with only the races in China and Brazil remaining.

After Hamilton botched an attempt to regain the lead, forcing Kimi Raikkonen off the track and earning a drive-through penalty, critics wondered if he was again starting to crack under pressure, as he did last year towards the end of the season.

The McLaren driver admits he is finding it difficult to cope. "It's not easy to always say or do the right thing, and when you're constantly being scrutinised it can be particularly difficult," he said.

"Recently, there have been lots of different quotes attributed to me. I've said things that have either come out the wrong way or been taken out of context, so people get a different feeling of what I've said when I haven't expressed myself correctly.

"I'm only human, and every now and then people make mistakes. Communication is so important in life and some of the things I've said were not meant to harm anyone. I don't feel like I've hurt anyone, and my family makes sure that doesn't happen."

Such a comment recently attributed to Hamilton quoted him as saying he felt he was a better driver than his hero, Ayrton Senna. "I never said that," Hamilton said. "I definitely wouldn't say it about Ayrton because he's my favourite driver.

Hamilton has moved from Britain to Geneva but wishes on occasion he could return to living a normal life. "I don't see myself as a celebrity," he said. "I feel I'm the same guy I was before I got to F1, just more measured, maybe.

"You get people watching you all the time so you have to be careful about what you say or what you do. It's not easy to live like I used to, but I can still do it sometimes. You just do it with people you trust and be smart about it."