Lewis Hamilton feels that his Championship hopes are in jeopardy following Max Verstappen’s victory at the US Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton had a very closely fought battle at COTA this Sunday. However, it was the former who came on top after an aggressive strategy gamble paid off for him.
Hamilton is now 12 points behind the Red Bull driver, and the Briton does not feel confident going into the last five races of the season. The Briton admits that they have to expect a very tough battle to stop Verstappen from winning the title.
“We are going to the next two tracks which are very strong circuits for Red Bull. It is going to be tough,” Hamilton said. “We will just try and minimize how strong they can be compared to us, and see if we can do a better job.”
“I am trying not to think about it at the moment, but be happy with the job I did today. I am living in the moment and will take it one race at a time.”
Max Verstappen was just too quick for us, says Lewis Hamilton
Despite getting off to a dream start, Hamilton could not capitalize on it. The Mercedes driver struggled to get away, and Verstappen stayed on his tail for 10 laps before the latter decided to pit.
The strategy Red Bull had for the Dutchman was precarious, but his car’s overall performance and fantastic driving led to the 24-year-old winning his 8th race of the season.
“The goal was to get in the lead, and I finally got a good start,” added Hamilton. “I have not had as good a start like that for a long time. I was really happy with it.
“So, it was about staying clean, coming out ahead, and holding on to it. It felt good at the time, and like, ‘hey this is step one’, but they were just too quick.”
Hamilton and Verstappen resume their quest for the title in two weeks when F1 returns to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico.
Also read: “It’s been a real challenge”– Why are Red Bull suddenly quicker against Mercedes at COTA?
