Kevin Magnussen says he has no plans to alter his driving style despite Fernando Alonso becoming the latest driver to criticise him.
Alonso branded Magnussen an "idiot" after the pair touched as he attempted to pass the Haas through Turns One and Two at last week's Malaysia GP.
The Spaniard also said "Hulkenberg is right", in reference to the spat between Nico Hulkenberg and Magnussen at the Hungarian GP, and "For his driving, we more or less agree with the other drivers, it's 19-1."
But Magnussen insists he needs to be aggressive in order to secure points for Haas in the tight midfield battle and won't change his approach while he is given the all clear by the stewards.
"I expect anyone to make it as hard as possible. Everyone is maxed out on trying to make it as hard as possible for each other," he told reporters at the Japanese GP.
"What matters to me is what the stewards think. I know that I'm pushing hard and that's my intention. If it's fine for the stewards then it's fine.
"It's pretty simple. We are not in a position to just drive into the points. We need to fight and we need to fight hard to stay in the points if we find ourselves there."
Magnussen, who turned 24 on Thursday, has scored points in three races this year - China, Monaco, Azerbaijan - but none since June.
Grosjean v Magnussen: All of Haas' 2017 results
"I often find myself further up at the beginning of the race because when everyone is together it's easier to make positions and fight your way up. But once everything settles, your race pace is more important and sometimes when you are in eighth and are not fast enough, you have to fight," he said.
"It's a good sign when people are struggling to get past. I'd prefer to be in a situation where I didn't have to fight to keep people behind and I could just drive my way into the points but there is a difference in the way you have to drive.
"If you're not fast enough to be in the top 10 you really need to fight hard, maybe if you're going for a world championship you want to play a little bit safer. But for us we need to go to every race for the maximum in order to try and get a point or two."
Happy birthday Kevin...
The Dane celebrated his birthday with the Haas team and team-mate Romain Grosjean in Suzuka on Thursday...
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