“Mind games” may be a trending word of the 2021 season. With an intense championship battle between Mercedes and Red Bull, it has been a common accusation on either side of the front line. To what extent this is true or effective, no one knows; but Lewis Hamilton makes it known that distracting Verstappen is far from problems.

In a recent interview with SkySports, Hamilton shed light on a recent statement he made that brought in a lot of controversies. Ahead of the Russian GP, Hamilton had stated that he empathized with the pressure Verstappen feels; considering Hamilton said this after their collision in Monza, it sounded like a nuanced swing from Hamilton.

However, now the defending champion stated that his only focus lies on his game. “I don’t spend a moment thinking what might or what might not be a distraction for him, that doesn’t bother me either way.”

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Hamilton added, “If I do my job to the best of my abilities, I don’t have a problem. That’s how I approach my job.” In a classic case of a rivalry between a maestro and a rising star, the sport has many that fit into that box. However, Hamilton and Verstappen bring something new and exciting; something that will be talked about for a long time.

Lewis Hamilton & Max Verstappen’s calm approach

In the interview, Lewis explained his alternative approach to the championship. “I’ve been drawing on feeding off this energy of doing this positive work. I noticed that last year and it was a part of that last year.”

Now, with five rounds to go, Hamilton looked back on the year that was. “I expected it was going to be a rollercoaster ride. It’s been amazing, it’s been the hardest year on so many levels, but there’s been so many positives and I have really, really enjoyed it, even the difficult days…”It definitely could be better in the sense that we’ve dropped points, we’ve not always been perfect, but you live and you learn…”

His contender takes a similar philosophical approach to the hectic season and the result that awaits him. “I know that if my car is fast enough until the end of the season, I will win the championship, but if it’s not, then we probably won’t win it. At the end of the day, it’s not going to change my world.”

While the protagonists of the season are relatively calm, the rest of the F1 world waits anxiously for Abu Dhabi. Doubly, for the buildup to the grand finale. With a triple-header and challenging circuits ahead, the championship lead could change hands either way. While Lewis and Max stay Zen, we wait anxiously for what is coming.

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