Max Verstappen has issued a challenge to Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton, asking them to step up and give him the
title fight Formula One needs.
With four rounds remaining, Verstappen easily won his second championship of the previous season, winning 15 of
the 22 races.
On the other hand, Hamilton had the worst year of his career in his underperforming Mercedes, failing to win a race
and finishing 214 points behind.
However, at Red Bull’s season opener in New York, Verstappen, 25, addressed the possibility of rekindling his rivalry
with Hamilton, saying, “In the interest of the sport you always want the teams to be super-close.”
“It was close last year, I suppose, but we did a lot of things as a team better than the others, which is why we had
such a large points differential.
With the exception of two or three races, I never thought we were completely in control. However, everyone wants a
title fight involving several teams for the benefit of Formula One as a whole.
Verstappen is the driver most likely to win again, and he will begin his championship defence in Bahrain next month
after a strong campaign with few changes to the F1 rules.
“I don’t think about being the favourite because you have to keep working and keep improving because if you don’t
they will catch up and overtake you,” the Dutchman continued.
“This year, we want to continue winning, and that is our goal. Although I am aware that it won’t be easy, I think we
have a strong chance. Although we have hope, we still need to keep getting better.
Ford will now be back on the grid after a 20-year hiatus thanks to an engine agreement revealed by Verstappen’s Red
Bull squad on Friday.
Ford stopped being involved in Formula One when it sold Jaguar to Red Bull 19 years ago, but the American
automaker has been eager to take advantage of the sport’s recent upsurge in popularity in the US after the success of
Netflix’s “Drive to Survive” series.
