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Lewis Hamilton has been Johnny on the Spot in Formula One for nearly two years now. The McLaren driver has shown sustained flashes of brilliance that excite the racing world. Alas, he also tends to spit the bit when under pressure to win the most important championship.

Wins are great in Formula One. So are Constructors Championships. At the end of the day, however, the mark of a driver is really only whether he wins the overall championship or not.

In this regard, a disturbing trend is starting to appear with Hamilton. To put it mildly, he feels the pressure in a big way based solely on what we see on the course. From the 2008 season to this one, we see the same strange errors.

The Japanese Grand Prix last weekend bears this out. Lewis did a brilliant lap to take pole. His main rival, Felipe Massa, did a poor lap and qualified fifth. Hamilton was in the cat birds seat and Massa was facing a nightmarish day.

The obvious strategy for the race was to go conservative. Stay near the front and just rack up the points. Even losing a point to Massa would not matter much with only two races left in the seasons.

When the race launches, Hamilton immediately loses it. He is beat to the first turn. Instead of slotting into second place, he brashly dives into the first corner like a man with his hair on fire. He nearly causes a crash, ends up getting penalized and the day is a disaster with no points.

What could Hamilton possibly be thinking? If he had cruised around behind Raikkonen for the entire race, he would have finished second and taken more points from Massa. The only answer is Hamilton panicked.

Massa, of course, faired no better. He rammed Hamilton like a bull in Spain and then ran over Bourdais for some utterly bizarre reason. It appears neither Hamilton or Massa will win the title. Instead, one will lose it with a brain freeze of some sort.

With Massa, however, you can understand the aggressive moves. He has to catch Hamilton. Hamilton just has to protect his lead. With the odd scoring in Formula One, he practically is assured of the title if he just drives around safely.

The great irony of the Japanese Grand Prix is found in the driver that got it right. Yes, Fernando Alonso. With a car that does not compare to the McLaren or Ferrari, Fernando drove a solid race and brought home the win. Lewis should consider doing the same.

Does all this mean Lewis has no taste for strategy? Of course, not. It simply means that he is feeling the pressure. He choked badly last year. This year, he has two races to get it right. If not, a reputation will be established that he will really not like.