Abu Dhabi GP: Lewis Hamilton says it’s ‘natural’ for Max Verstappen to target him

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen clashed at last weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix; the two collided on track several times in the intense title race last season; Watch the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 all weekend – with race on Sunday at 1pm

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Lewis Hamilton agrees it is “natural” for Max Verstappen to take on him harder because he is the most successful driver, and believes Mercedes have learned a lot this year due to an underperforming car

Lewis Hamilton says his lead in Formula 1 makes it “natural” for Max Verstappen to tackle him more aggressively than other rivals.

Verstappen, who won a thrilling world title fight with Hamilton last season, clinched his maiden title with several collisions with the seven-time world champion in the tight race for 2021. championship title.

Red Bull’s dominance this year and Mercedes’ lack of rhythm have resulted in a lack of on-track encounters between the 2022 rivals, but with the Silver Arrows finally catching up in recent weeks, Verstappen and Hamilton were on the mend at last weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix. There was a collision and the Dutchman received a 5-second penalty for causing the collision.

Speaking in Abu Dhabi ahead of this weekend’s season finale, Hamilton was asked at the scene of Verstappen’s controversial title-winning victory last year if he expected the rivalry to remain controversial.

He replied: “Very likely. I think I’ll get used to it.

“You’ve seen me in previous years trying to avoid [contact] in the scene.

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Verstappen, Hamilton collide at Sao Paulo after race restart after safety car

“I’m sure we’ll grow, both sides will hopefully grow and improve, so we don’t have the same experience as the last game, but I’m not going to hold my breath.”

Hamilton was then asked a follow-up question if he thought the reason for Verstappen’s particularly aggressive driving style towards him was because he was the most successful driver the sport has ever seen.

The 37-year-old smiled before replying: “I think so, you might be right.

“I remember when I first got into the sport, you aimed for the man with the most titles. It was Fernando (Alonso) and then Kimi (Raikkonen) because Kimi was the best here One of the drivers and then Seb (Vettel), so I think it’s natural.”

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Hamilton didn’t think about last season’s Abu Dhabi GP, nor focus on what’s behind him

Hamilton also revealed that the only time he had an “in-depth” conversation with Verstappen was when he tried to persuade Verstappen to kneel with him in support of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. this way.

“I don’t think there’s any deeper context because we never really had that deep conversation,” Hamilton said.

“The only time we really had a deep conversation was actually in Austria in 2020, when I went to him and talked to him about what Black Lives Matter means and what it would mean if he supported it.

“I tried to explain what it was like, why we were fighting, and what it was about. Obviously, it didn’t make a difference.”