Lewis Hamilton Sparks Major Doubts Over Championship Run Against Max Verstappen This Year

The Austrian GP result was not something Lewis Hamilton would’ve wanted after signing a two-year contract extension with Mercedes. The seven-time world champion failed to secure a podium finish as he came home in fourth. This further increased the gap between him and the driver’s championship leader, Max Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton sustained damage to his car at lap 29 after some heavy contact with the Red Bull Ring’s Turn 10 kerbs. As a result, both Valtteri Bottas and Lando Norris overtook him. Hence, the Briton lost 14 crucial points to Max Verstappen.

Watch Story: From Shocking Lewis Hamilton Crash to Ferrari Pit Stop Blunder: Most Sensational Moments in Bahrain GP History

What did Lewis Hamilton say?

After the Austrian GP, Lewis Hamilton revealed Max Verstappen has total control over the championship and Mercedes cannot do anything about it.

“Max is walking away with it right now and there is not really much we can do about it,” said Lewis Hamilton in the post-race press conference.

“They have added so much performance and we have a lot of work to do to try and close that gap.”

The seven-time world champion hopes that the Silver Arrows will rectify their mistakes and bounce back at Silverstone in two weeks’ time.

“I hope our car feels better [at Silverstone]. It has been pretty poor here the last two weeks – it has definitely been a painful few races. But we will keep our heads up and keep trying,” added Lewis Hamilton.

“We will work as much as we can to improve in the next couple of weeks. We have been massively down at this track. It will be interesting to see how it is in the other races to go.” 

Lewis Hamilton currently sits at P2 in the driver’s championship, 32 points behind the leader, Max Verstappen. The Briton has 14 race weekends left this season to make a comeback and clinch the record eighth title.

‘Verstappen in his own league’: Toto Wolff

Max Verstappen is currently in the form of his life. The Dutch sensation took the flag a whopping 18 seconds ahead of Valtteri Bottas who finished P2. Meanwhile, the Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, believes Max Verstappen is in his own league.

“I think Max is in a league of his own, but maybe we can crack the others. There is no special place where we lose a lot of time. The loss is spread over the entire lap,” said Toto Wolff.

“The gap to Max is not shocking, but as I said, we lose over the entire lap. It’s not just the tire, the chassis, the engine, it’s all of it. We see that we have to improve in every respect.”

Read More: Verstappen Backs Norris in Slamming ‘Stupid’ FIA for Harsh F1 Penalties After Austrian GP

Can Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes find their old form at the British Grand Prix? What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.