Hamilton praises 'exceptional' Vettel

"I think he has been exceptional this year," said Hamilton on Thursday in Singapore.

"He has really driven really, really well. He has finished first and second in all the races, apart from one, so massively consistent, massively well controlled.

"His persona, his attitude I think has been very professional, he has made very few mistakes - and even the two small mistakes have not been very costly. So I take my hat off to him - I think he has done fantastically well."

Vettel, last year's world champion, has scored eight victories this season and has finished on the podium 12 times in 13 races.

Hamilton's team-mate Jenson Button also hailed Vettel's season, claiming the German has driven a lot better than last year, whe he feels the Red Bull driver made too many mistakes.

"I said last year before he won the championship that I didn't think he would win, because he made too many mistakes," said Button. "That it my opinion, obviously he will not agree with that, but this year he has driven really well.

"More than his speed, he has made a lot less mistakes, he looks very confident in the car he is driving.

"You don't win a world championship in a bad car, you win a championship in a good car, but he has got a great car underneath and has done the perfect job with it."