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Lewis Hamilton’s Legacy in Grave Danger as Max Verstappen’s Dream Starts To Become a Reality

Published 03/02/2023, 12:30 PM EST

From the vantage point of Max Verstappen, he’s currently at the top of the world. After a close fought battle for his maiden F1 title in 2021, he stomped the entire field in 2022 as he ran away with the title with 4 races to go! Coming into 2023, he is still the clear favorite to clinch a third consecutive title. Red Bull, from the looks of it, have created an untamed beast in the form of the RB19, and if the past is any indication, Verstappen seems like the only one capable enough of taming it. But should Lewis Hamilton worry about his legacy?

Before the dominant streak Verstappen finds himself in began, there was another dynasty. Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton at the helm, took the turbo-hybrid era of the sport and wrung it by its neck. Mercedes has had its name on every Constructors’ championship trophy since 2014. And this streak only ended last year, with the advent of the new regulations that ushered in a brand new era of the sport. Even though Red Bull worked tirelessly to end the Silver Arrows’ domination, it would appear that it was the intention of the rule-makers from the very beginning.

Sky Sports F1’s pundit, Ted Kravitz revealed all on the broadcaster’s vodcast. He began, “There is a reasonably commonly held opinion among some people in the paddock that they only changed the rules – or part of the reason why they changed the rules – was to stop Mercedes dominance. Well, that certainly worked, didn’t it?”

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And with the next leg of a massive rule upheaval due in 2026, Max Verstappen goes into very season until then as the clear favorite. If he plays his cards right, he may end up as a 6x champion, just one shy of Hamilton’s seven, by that time.

“It meant Red Bull got it right so much that they are now the favorites going in. That dominance, I think, will run probably until the next rule change in 2026,” predicted the British journalist.

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The rivalry between Verstappen and Hamilton have taken many turns in the past. However, it would appear that both of them see eye-to-eye about one thing.

Max Verstappen finds a rare ally in Lewis Hamilton against the FIA

Verstappen and Hamilton are polar opposites in many respects. That being said, both of them are also absolute masters of their crafts. Naturally, they know a thing or two about racing and the technicalities of it all. And this is exactly why they are in strong opposition to the plans of the FIA to ban tire blankets in the near future.

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Verstappen had earlier said, “Then I think we’re going to have a lot of crashes. It’s tough,” when asked about the ban. While Hamilton recently came out with a pretty aggressive stance on the same matter. He said, “I’ve tested the no blankets, and there is going to be an incident at some stage. So, I think it is the wrong decision.”

“You have to drive multiple laps to get the tires to work. The more concern is when you go out: you are skating around and it is very twitchy. If someone else is on tires that are working, you can easily collide with them. So, it is a pointless exercise,” explained the 38-year-old.

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Do you think Max Verstappen can surpass Lewis Hamilton’s record of seven F1 titles?

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Written by:

Anirban Aly Mandal is a Formula 1 Author at EssentiallySports. In his pursuit for a Bachelor's degree in Law from Symbiosis Law School, he has written multiple academic papers centered around the domain of motorsports. Not only that, but due to his love for F1, he aims to work as a legal advisor in the most prestigious racing series in the world some day.

Edited by:

Gideon Mathson

Lewis Hamilton’s Legacy in Grave Danger as Max Verstappen’s Dream Starts To Become a Reality

Max Verstappen finds a rare ally in Lewis Hamilton against the FIA

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