Ferrari's world championship-leading star Felipe Massa insists it is impossible to compare himself to the last Brazilian to sit atop the F1 title standings - the late, great Ayrton Senna - but believes he is ready to follow in his compatriot's footsteps by lifting the drivers' crown.

Despite being the first Brazilian to lead the Formula 1 World Drivers' Championship since Ayrton Senna more than 15 years ago, Felipe Massa has insisted he is not 'making any comparisons' between himself and the late, great three-time world champion.

Massa seized the advantage in the title chase following his triumph in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours a fortnight ago - his third win of 2008, and one that has made him the most successful driver of the season to-date in terms of race victories.

That position, though, he stressed would not affect his approach for the upcoming British Grand Prix at Silverstone this weekend - a race that has traditionally been kind to Ferrari in recent years, if not necessarily to the São Paolista himself.

"Coming here leading the championship does not change much in terms of my attitude," he underlined, "because there are so many races to go. Our work methods do not change at all, especially as there have been four different leaders already this year.

"My aim is the same, which is to try and win the race. I don't think it will be easy with the uncertain weather and the strong competition, and I think it is too early to say who is my strongest opponent amongst the three who are close behind me at the moment.

"Fighting against three drivers rather than having just one opponent close on points is actually a much tougher challenge, because if you have a difficult weekend, you can suddenly find yourself behind all three of them on points.

"They all have a chance of beating me and I would not say that one of them in particular has the best chance. I think it is very equal, but I do not feel under any pressure and I just get on with my work with the team to make the car as good as possible.

"I think I am ready to be world champion. I cannot say I am not ready given the position I am in, but I can only repeat that there is still a long way to go and this is the time to think about one race at the time, not the whole championship."

The 'one race' on which all his attentions are focussed right now is of course the British Grand Prix, but with only a brace of fifth places from his five previous F1 outings at Silverstone, Massa is well aware that he will not be entering the meeting as favourite - despite his world championship advantage.

That notwithstanding, the 27-year-old admitted that it is a weekend he generally enjoys, even if he is wary of both the notoriously unpredictable British weather, and the challenge that will be offered by close rivals McLaren-Mercedes and BMW-Sauber.

"Looking for my fourth win of the season will be very tough here at Silverstone," he reflected, "but every race is difficult as we know our competitors are working very hard, as indeed are we.

"We know there could be the further complication of bad weather, so we have to concentrate on what we do in every practice session, qualifying and the race to make sure we do everything right.

"The test here last week was very important for us in defining a good base-line from which to start this weekend. We did a lot of miles and that is the basis for being in good shape now, and I have to say that Silverstone is a nice circuit and the race always has a nice atmosphere as the English fans are very enthusiastic. I am hoping we will perform well in front of them."

When pressed about the chief influences on his career, finally - one that has seen him seal eight grand prix victories and 249 points since first getting his break in the top flight with Sauber-Petronas back in 2002 - Massa cited his father, whilst acknowledging his admiration for compatriot Senna and former Ferrari team-mate and record-breaking seven-time title-winner Michael Schumacher.

"My father has been the most important person in my career, coming to many races," he related. "We are in touch every day, even if it is just on the phone. I believe Ayrton is the best driver ever together with Michael, and in fact it's very difficult to say who was better out of the two of them as they were both at a similar level.

"I would say that Senna is an example of what a great driver should be. I don't make any comparisons between myself and Ayrton. I have tried to learn from what he did, but he raced in a different era and so there is not much to take from that. To be honest, I of course learnt more from Michael as I was his team-mate and he was a good teacher."