Lewis Hamilton has responded to Max Verstappen’s comments that winning both championships is “unrealistic.”
While Verstappen is pessimistic about his chances of defending his World Championship title, Hamilton acknowledges Verstappen’s feelings but notes that he himself is “quite ahead” in the standings. Recently, Red Bull had their worst points haul of the season in Monza, with Verstappen finishing sixth and Sergio Perez eighth.
This, combined with McLaren’s double podium finish, resulted in a significant points swing in McLaren’s favor, reducing the gap to Red Bull to just eight points. Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship also suffered, with Lando Norris cutting the advantage to 62 points after taking eight more points off Verstappen’s lead.
In his post-race media comments, Verstappen said, “Right now, both championships are unrealistic.” He reiterated this view ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, stating, “If we perform like we did in Monza, it will be unrealistic.”
“That’s why we need to be significantly better than the performance we’ve shown recently. We’re aware of that,” he added. “If we can achieve a better balance with the car, then we’ll be more competitive. But I don’t know if being more competitive will be enough.”
When asked about Verstappen’s “unrealistic” claim, Hamilton, who was Verstappen’s championship rival in 2021, responded, “Did he say it’s unrealistic for him to win one of the two championships?”
“I think that’s his opinion, how he feels at the moment. But he’s still quite ahead in terms of points.”
Considering Verstappen has won only seven races this season compared to his 19 victories last season, it’s not surprising that the Red Bull driver may not feel very confident. Verstappen is currently enduring his longest winless streak since 2020, with the last six victories going to Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari.
Hamilton relished the situation: “It’s great. I think it’s how it should be. When they set these rules, the goal was probably this, but it never worked out that way.”
“It’s fantastic to be in this period where McLaren is experiencing a big rise, Ferrari won the last race, and before that, we won. I hope we see something similar in the next eight races and that it continues consistently.”
