It is no secret that Max Verstappen has become nearly unstoppable with his dominant Red Bull this season. Lewis Hamilton hasn’t been a fan of this domination and has complained about it on several occasions. The seven-time world champion feels that Verstappen winning all races is boring for the sport. However, following a close battle with McLaren at the British GP, Hamilton has taken back his words about F1 becoming boring.
The latest scuffle between Hamilton and Verstappen kicked off when the Mercedes driver claimed that the FIA should step in to neutralize Red Bull’s dominance to make the sport more interesting. He claimed that there should be a timeframe before which a team shouldn’t be able to develop their car, which should equalize the grid.
However, Verstappen didn’t waste a lot of time in hitting back at Hamilton, and pointing out the hypocrisy in his claims. The Dutchman explained that Hamilton did not say these things when he was dominating the sport a few years back with Mercedes.
Hamilton responded and clarified that he wanted the change the rules for all the teams and did not necessarily mean to target Red Bull or Verstappen in particular. He admitted that even though he was lucky enough to enjoy a similar period of dominance himself, it was harmful for the sport overall. Similarly, Verstappen’s current dominance is also equally problematic for F1.
Lewis Hamilton believes that F1 is becoming interesting again
The British GP saw a resurgence in form for McLaren. Their drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished P2 and P4 respectively. Hamilton himself was sandwiched between the two McLaren stars, and finished P3 in his home race. Looking back at the performance of the Woking-based squad, Hamilton admitted that the sport is in an extremely exciting place.
Lewis Hamilton spoke to Tom Clarkson after the British GP and reflected on his podium finish. He explained that even though it was a satisfying result for him, Mercedes still have a lot of work to do if they want to put themselves in proper competitive form.
When asked if the McLaren was faster than them this weekend, Hamilton immediately said yes. He continued and explained, “What I would say is that this is one of the most exciting times I think we’ve seen in the sport where we’ve finally started to see the regs pull people closer.”
Hamilton also mentioned the brilliant performances put in by Alex Albon in the Williams. He said, “The other day, you’ve seen the Williams was up there with Albon. You’ve seen the McLarens now, the Astons. So we have a lot of teams getting very very close, small gaps in qualifying, this is exactly what we need.”
Hamilton seems worried about the McLaren
Hamilton had shown concern about the pace of the McLaren drivers when the papaya outfit managed to get their cars in P2 and P3 during qualifying. In stark contrast, Mercedes had only managed to get to P6 and P7. Hamilton’s former team brought in upgrades that have played to their favor in Silverstone. Now, the question is whether they will work similarly well at the upcoming race in Hungaroring.
When asked if another team overtaking them in terms of pace is a blow to Mercedes, Hamilton replied that it was not a blow, but more of a “wake-up call” for Mercedes (as reported by Motorsport). According to the 38-year-old, the Brackley-based outfit needs to work harder, now that other teams have caught up with them.
