Zoom All getting a little petty at the end of the season

Near the end of a weekend of jibes, Lewis Hamilton has hit back hard at his staunchest critics.

The championship leader, who could wrap up the 2008 title in Shanghai, served up a biting reply to Fernando Alonso, his former McLaren team-mate who has vowed to help Felipe Massa to emerge with the spoils.

"He was a double world champion who came to the team and got beaten by a rookie. That says it all," Hamilton told reporters in China.

"When someone has been winning, then another driver comes in and takes over, then they are not going to be happy about it," he added.

The Briton said he is not upset he is not invited to play cards with a band of his competitors, including Alonso and BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica.

"I don't play poker," he said. "Some drivers get together, I'm here to race. "

Hamilton denied he has been drawn in to a round of mind games.

"I don't believe in them. There is no need to, because we can do the job."

He believes the reason for his unpopularity among his fellow drivers is obvious.

"It is because I'm winning," Hamilton said. "When you are a winner, when you are doing well, that is the game."

Source: GMM
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