Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel believes Michael Schumacher is the greatest driver of all time despite Lewis Hamilton equalling his record of seven titles.

Hamilton, 35, also surpassed Schumacher’s record of 91 Grand Prix victories, but German Vettel insists there remains something special which sets his compatriot apart from the Brit.

"I still say that Michael is the best of all time, for me," he told Zeit Magazin.

"When it came down to it, he unlocked a kind of extra level. I have never felt this fascination, this talent, in anyone else."

Vettel then backtracked on his words somewhat by adding: "Actually, it is presumptuous to name the best of all time.

"It is impossible to compare a Fangio with a Senna. Maybe Schumacher would have had a hard time in the 1950s, and Fangio wouldn't have won in the 2000s."

Hamilton clinched his seventh drivers’ world championship with victory in Turkey earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Vettel is third on the list of the most GP wins by a driver with 53, more than 40 behind Hamilton who sits on 94.

Scumacher, Hamilton and Vettel are three of just five drivers to have won four or more world titles, with the other two being Juan Manuel Fangio and Alain Prost.