Damon Hill has warned Lewis Hamilton that he must focus solely on trying to win the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix if he wants to become Formula 1 world champion.

Hamilton leads the title race by 17 points from Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg, but the German can take the crown if he wins and the Briton fails to finish second.

For Hill, who won the drivers' championship in 1996, Hamilton must block out any previous issues with his team to emerge triumphant.

He told The Independent: "You reset the task. The task is to become world champion. If either has a mechanical problem, there's nothing you can do about that. It happens.

"It would be tragic if Lewis didn't win the World Championship this year, because then he didn't win it because Mercedes let him down, to be honest. There's no question. So we're in a bit of an awkward situation, but there's no good getting cross or blaming anyone else. That's what it is.

"I think the right approach is to just look at it as a race to become world champion. Win this and become world champion. And he doesn't even have to win it, so he's in a curious position."

Hamilton has won 10 grands prix so far this season.