“I expect a lot of booing”– Nico Rosberg cautions Lewis Hamilton of hostile behaviour Dutch fans are going to show him this weekend.
Max Verstappen will have his first home race for the first time in his F1 career, but for Lewis Hamilton, it could be bad news, as Verstappen’s countrymen are not pleased with recent events at Silverstone.
Orange Army! 🇳🇱🧡#MaxVerstappen #F1 #AustrianGP #MightyMax pic.twitter.com/ZrsTaK3zVW
— MightyMax (@Mighty33Max) July 3, 2019
Since then, Hamilton has been subject to unpleasant behaviour from the Dutch fans in all the following Grand Prix. This time, Nico Rosberg claims it may multiply since the number of Verstappen fans would severely multiply.
“The battle this year has been phenomenal to watch. Lewis is one of the best drivers of all time, and Max has what it takes to become one. He’s already top ten at least,” Rosberg said to De Telegraaf.
“The fans will be against Lewis. I expect a lot of booing, even if that’s not a good part of the sport. But we all know it’s going to happen. I hope they don’t crash again, but there will certainly be another touch soon.
“Verstappen has always been an aggressive driver and Hamilton has also said he will no longer hold back. It is impossible to predict who will win. This fight will be fought until the last race.”
Dutch organizers asked for friendly behaviour
Earlier this month, the Dutch GP organizer pleaded with the Dutch fans to host Hamilton with grace, as he kept the seven-time world champion in the same bracket as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Therefore, he urged that showing respect to Hamilton would be the only appropriate behaviour, and most probably would surprise him seeing no hostility from his main rival’s compatriots.
But it doesn’t seem like the fans would leave any stone unturned to affect the psychology of Hamilton, according to whom, the hate makes him stronger.