“I don’t like to compare it to past drivers or past champions”– Lewis Hamilton discloses his irritation with media comparing his rivalry with Max Verstappen to the past champions

“I don’t like to compare it to past drivers or past champions”– Lewis Hamilton talks about what he doesn’t like in his rivalry against Max Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are giving an iconic rivalry to Formula 1, which will surely be discussed in the years to come ahead, as it’s so rare when the two different generations lock horns against each other so intensely.

It is unique because, in such scenarios, there is often a massive power disparity within a side, but over here, both sides have equal resources and are giving the toughest challenges to each other.

This has prompted F1 experts to name it a rivalry like Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, which is not going well with Hamilton, as he believes his battle with Verstappen is unique.

“I remember when I first started watching [F1] and particularly rewatching footage of the Senna-Prost period,” Hamilton told RacingNews365.com.

“At the time it was just exciting. I had no idea whether that was good or bad for the sport. Today I think, [when I was] growing up racing, wheel-to-wheel racing was always the best in karting.”

“If you look, the most exciting times in motorsport is when you see wheel-to-wheel racing. We’re now seeing, fortunately, two teams [who are] incredibly close in performance.”

“I don’t like to compare it to past drivers or past champions. It’s a new era, a new time. But I would imagine it’s not bad for the sport. I think we are trying to continuously improve the sport and how we engage with the fans, and provide them with the most exciting races.”

“If there’s more people watching that tells you everything.”

Ready for the second half

Hamilton will soon encounter his arch-rival Verstappen at the end of this week, as the season will resume in Belgium after the four-week-long summer break.

Currently, Hamilton leads the championship chart this season, but the Dutch race driver will have his home race in the first week of September, giving a golden chance to make a comeback.

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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