Days After Max Verstappen’s “D**khead” Jibe, Lewis Hamilton Along With F1 Rival Hailed for Noble Behavior

The Azerbaijan GP weekend turned out to be quite an eventful one. For starters, Charles Leclerc beat the Red Bull duo to the pole position in the qualifying for the Sprint and the Main Race. Then, George Russell, against all odds, overtook Max Verstappen during the Sprint. As the race progressed to the Turn 2 of the first lap, Russell did not leave Verstappen much space, and resultantly, the duo came together. The Dutchman took some damage to his floor and the bodywork and later confronted the Briton in the parc ferme. There, the camera picked on him calling the Mercedes junior driver a “d**khead“. Amidst all this, Lewis Hamilton and one of his grid rivals have scored some brownie points for their excellent behavior.

Hamilton wasn’t counted among the most well-behaved teammates back in the day. His duels with his former Mercedes partner, Nico Rosberg, are still fresh in fans’ minds. However, after all the success and during his ongoing slump, he has learned to hold his horses. On and off the track.

Lewis Hamilton and his grid rival were hailed for their good behavior and touted to make good teammates

Hamilton is currently in the final year of his contract with Mercedes. It is pretty apparent that even at 38, the only reason he is hanging on is because of that coveted 8th-world title. Going by the way things at Mercedes are going right now, it does not look like it will happen anytime soon. That has led many to speculate if he will move on from the team in 2024, and if yes, Ferrari could be a likely destination.

Former F1 driver turned expert, Johnny Herbert, was recently quoted by Express Sport as saying, “When I look at Charles and I look at Lewis I don’t see they’ve got this sort of ‘I am number one. I am the only number one in the team and if I’m not number one I will get all upset and b****y and spit my dummy out of my pram’.”

“I don’t see that with those two. So I think it could benefit Ferrari. It’s not something that I think would be difficult to control. I don’t think you will get the awkwardness. It might happen, Charles is going to grow up in the coming years but the experience of someone like Lewis would be wonderful to have that for two or three years.”

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The Silver Arrows are currently doing everything in their capacity to challenge for the race wins once again. They currently have an upgrade package in the pipeline that got delayed owing to the cancellation of the race in Imola. But would that really be enough to bring them close to the Red Bull boys?

Hamilton urged not to get his hopes up for the upcoming Mercedes upgrades

Mercedes has three big upgrades that will feature on the W14 at the upcoming Monaco GP. The biggest of them all is the aerodynamic overhaul. Following that will be some changes to the floor and the front suspension. The numbers on the simulator show positive signs, but Toto Wolff, Mercedes team principal, is refusing to get his hopes too high.

Auto Motor und Sport recently quoted him as saying, “The upgrade package is a big intervention. In the virtual world, it promises a good step in terms of lap time. But we have to curb our expectations. In my 15 years in Formula 1, I have not yet seen that someone suddenly came with a miracle weapon that suddenly brought half a second. That’s why I have my doubts that this is the case here.”[Translated using Google]

Watch This Story: George Russell Sends a Feisty Response to Max Verstappen’s D**khead Jibe in Azerbaijan

Do you think Hamilton will jump ship to Ferrari if Mercedes fails to show any signs of improvement? Will his partnership with Leclerc really flourish, as Herbert believes?