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Formula One world champion Max Verstappen has bitten back at Lewis Hamilton’s comments, claiming the seven-time champion is ‘jealous’ at his recent dominance.
The Mercedes driver took aim at his former foe ahead of the Monza GP, as he playing down Verstappen’s success over the last two years that as seen him win back-to-back world championships and open a 138 point lead at the top of the 2023 standings.
Hamilton suggested that Verstappen’s achievements are nothing special, claiming that the Red Bull champion has had an easier ride.
Hamilton said: "I'm no more impressed than when Michael [Schumacher] was leading, when Sebastian [Vettel] was leading when Kimi [Raikkonen] was driving, when Fernando [Alonso] was winning – it's just the same," the seven-time world champion said when asked about Verstappen's accomplishments.
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"In my personal opinion, all my team-mates have been stronger than the team-mates Max has had – Jenson [Button], Fernando, George [Russell], Valtteri [Bottas], Nico [Rosberg]. I've had so many. These guys have all been very, very strong, very consistent – and Max has not raced against anyone like that."
Verstappen was asked on his reaction to Hamilton’s war of words in Monza ahead of this weekend’s Grand Prix. And the Dutchman snapped back at both Hamilton and Mercedes, suggesting they’re sore losers.
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He said: "Maybe he's a little jealous of my current success.
"This kind of statement… he possibly thinks he's winning something with that, but it makes no difference to me. I think Mercedes have a very hard time dealing with losing, after all these years of winning so much.
"At some point, you have to be realistic and then you have to be able to appreciate what other teams are doing. We did the same when they were dominant and we also said, 'We have to work harder because we are not good enough'. You can keep shouting and screaming that what we do is not that special… you just have to deal with yourself."
Sky Sports pundit and former F1 racer Martin Brundle revealed he was surprised by Hamilton’s words, he said: “That's Lewis' opinion and he very firmly put it out there.
“He's not going to give Max an ounce of oxygen, or anything, to pick him up. I'm surprised just how hard he was.
"Of course, Lewis has had strong team-mates but I wouldn't write off the likes of Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez, who Max has had alongside him. They are world-class racing drivers. Lewis just doesn't want to give anything away, does he?"
"To win at the rate Lewis has done, 103 victories, and the rate Max is, and to keep the mental aspect going every week in different tracks and weather conditions, is extraordinary. You can't be anything other than incredibly impressed by what Verstappen is doing. How many points has Perez scored in that time?"
- Formula One
- F1
- Lewis Hamilton
- Max Verstappen
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