Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton have been arch-rivals since the epic 2021 season. The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that year marked the change in the hegemony of the grid for a driver. Previously, Hamilton won back-to-back four titles from 2017 to 2020. He was on his way to winning his eighth title in 2021. But things took a dramatic turn when Red Bull presented the Dutch driver with a pretty competitive car in 2021.
Albeit, Mercedes won their eighth consecutive constructor title in 2021, there was a change in the name of the Driver’s champion. It was not Lewis Hamilton anymore. Since 2021, it has been over two more years, and the name is still Max Verstappen. Anyway, if there’s one thing in common between Hamilton and Verstappen, then it’s their various issues with FIA Rule changes.
Rarely Does An F1 Fan See Max Verstappen And Lewis Hamilton Agreeing At Something
Recently, Max Verstappen discussed the idea of having a couple of separate parc fermes on GP weekends in an interview with AMuS. The Dutch driver shared his issue with the car setup. After the first practice session, they generally lock it in. But if they get it wrong then it will feel like a trap for the rest of the weekend, feels Verstappen. Max Verstappen mentioned the problem with the car setup happened in Brazil last season. Albeit, Red Bull had a couple of good sprint weekends, the triple time champions was not very happy. For instance, Verstappen said he had issues with ground clearance in Austin. Moreover, Max talked about Ferrari and Mercedes, saying that they didn’t set their cars too low on purpose.
But it is hard to get away, feels Max when they get on the wrong track. Only tire pressure is the way drivers can react. But if that’s too high, they’re completely lost. That’s the reason why Verstappen has issues with sprint races. He feels they must make changes if they must continue with that format. Even Lewis Hamilton never sounded too thrilled about sprint races. Moreover, Max Verstappen mentioned a sprint race generally gives an idea of what to expect the next day. Max Verstappen feels that it gets easier to judge the race pace after a sprint.
How Dominating The Dutchman Has Been Over The Last Two Years?
Clearly, the Dutch driver has been the most dominant driver on the grid in recent times. He has taken the idea of dominating the grid to a whole other level. Before Verstappen, the most race wins for a driver in a season was 13. This record belonged to the great German drivers Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel. However, since 2022, Max Verstappen has been breaking the old and his own record. In 2022, he won 15 races alone when Red Bull won 17.
Similarly, last year, Red Bull again won two more races than what Max won. The Dutch driver won 19 GPs but Red Bull won 21, thanks to the two wins of Sergio Perez. That’s the level of domination the F1 fans are witnessing at present. It can get boring at times when there is not much competition from other drivers, such as Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes. On the contrary, the seven-time champion has been winless since 2022, owing to the awful Mercedes car.
