The new F1 season restarts next month, precisely 15th March in Melbourne, Australia – venue for the first race of the season but last year second runner-up Max Verstappen has stirred up Lewis Hamilton hornet’s nest. Maybe not literally but the Belgian-born Dutch Formula One driver has set his sights on taking on the six-time World Champion in 2020.
Without a doubt, Hamilton is the man to beat and he has several rivals ready to take him on and down starting from perennial rival, Sebastain Vettel to fellow Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas and others like the upcoming Charles Leclerc and of course Max Verstappen. In a recent interview, he insisted he can beat Lewis Hamilton in a straight fight for the Formula One world championship this season. The Red Bull driver was confident that, should his team provide a car able to match Mercedes, he is in no fear of taking the fight to the world champion.
Hamilton has six titles already and is attempting to match Michael Schumacher’s record of seven this season but, when Verstappen was asked whether he felt he could end the 35-year-old’s reign, his reply was immediate. “Yes,” he said unequivocally. He was respectful of Hamilton’s achievements but refused to be intimidated. “Lewis is very good. He is definitely one of the best out there but he is not God. Maybe God is with him, but he is not God,” Verstappen said.
The Dutch man believed Hamilton and Mercedes were vulnerable if Red Bull could put them under more pressure. “When you can put the pressure on, of course it is a lot harder for the guy in the lead,” Verstappen said. “If you never really have pressure, you can drive at 97-98% and you never make mistakes, or maybe one weekend out of 21-22.”Even if we start within 0.2secs, you can really mount the pressure and I would like to start straight away there because then it is really on. “I am looking forward to when we get that fight and we are really close; I am pretty sure we can do better.”
Hamilton has won five of the last six championships but the Dutch driver was clearly confident in his own abilities. He maintained that, with testing for the new season set to begin in Barcelona in two weeks, he was intent on ensuring he was as sharp as possible for the season opener in Melbourne on 15 March. “I feel good and I feel ready for it,” he said. “That is most important. I don’t really think about what my advantages over Lewis might be. I just focus on myself. I trust in myself.” Verstappen was emphatic he would be in the title fight as long as Red Bull can deliver a car within touching distance of Mercedes and Ferrari. Last year Red Bull could not quite match either of their main rivals for pace across the season, although they did enjoy an advantage at certain meetings that suited their engine and chassis.
He won three races and finished third in the championship behind Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, beating Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc. His team’s Honda power unit improved steadily as the year progressed and before the new season he was confident there was more to come and that his team was operationally ready to challenge.
Red Bull aim to build on last season strong finish; Verstappen took pole position in Mexico, before losing it to a penalty; finished a strong third close behind the Mercedes in the USA; and then took pole and victory in the penultimate race in Brazil, where he passed Hamilton twice on track. Verstappen then finished second to Hamilton in the season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The Austrian Formula One racing team believe that stability in the rules going into 2020 will give them the chance to pick up from a strong finish to last season. The team principal, Christian Horner, is also optimistic that Red Bull would start the season stronger than they had for some time.
The lights aren’t out yet but the excitement from the Red Bull garage is getting high. Lewis, you have more challengers and battle for the new campaign.