Lewis Hamilton on Max Verstappen's 2022 F1 title charge: It’s never great when the season finishes early

Amidst all the chatter around Max Verstappen potentially securing his second consecutive championship title this weekend, Lewis Hamilton claimed that it would be disappointing for the fans to see the championship essentially wrap up as early as October. Mathematically, the Red Bull driver, who has a 116-point advantage over his season rival Charles Leclerc, could win the championship at the Singapore Grand Prix with five races to go.

In a media interaction ahead of the 2022 F1 Singapore GP, Lewis Hamilton said:

“Yeah, definitely, I feel for the fans because that’s for everyone, and even for us, last year, going right down to the wire, that was intense for everybody and so it’s never great when the season finishes early, even when I’ve experienced having it finish early, in places like Mexico [in 2017 and 2018]. For you as the one individual it’s great, but for the actual sport is not spectacular. So I’m really grateful to have had it like 2008, right down to the last 17 seconds, and obviously last year pretty much the same thing. So yeah, let’s hope for the future that it’s a bit better.”

Meanwhile, Max Verstappen admitted that winning the championship at the upcoming Grand Prix is an unrealistic prospect because of the complex permutations and variations that would have to take place for it to happen. Speaking to the media, including Sportskeeda, in Singapore, the Dutchman said:

“I need to win, and Checo needs to finish fourth or lower and Charles eighth or lower. It’s a bit unrealistic for it to happen. So I don’t really think about it. It’s quite a long shot. And I just want to enjoy the weekend. And of course, try to win it.”

Verstappen confessed that he would prefer to seal the title at Suzuka because of the "special memories" the track holds for him. He said:

“I think Japan is nicer. I’m really excited to go back there. It’s been a while. It’s an amazing track. And for me anyway, it has quite special memories. The first time I drove an F1 car was there in FP1, and I will always remember that. And besides that, yes, it is kind of a home GP with Honda. And also, I think [it will be] my first proper opportunity to win the title. So yeah, of course, I’m looking forward to Singapore right now. But I’m also very excited for next weekend.”

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George Russell describes Lewis Hamilton as "the greatest driver of all time" but hopes to beat him

Lewis Hamilton has broken innumerable records and matched Michael Schumacher's seven-world championship titles to become a legend of the sport. His teammate George Russell, however, believes he is capable of matching the same and competing to become a world champion.

As reported by the Express, George Russell spoke of going up against Lewis Hamilton, saying:

“I am going up against the greatest driver of all time, I have nothing to lose. He has won everything, the stats speak for themselves, so why should a young 24-year-old be able to compete with that? If you have that mindset, I am in a win-win position. I want to be world champion, but saying it, dreaming about it, is one thing – you have got to make it happen.”

“Short term I am working as hard as I can on myself to improve the overall package and performance. Then there is no reason why I can’t achieve my long-term goal.”

Currently, George Russell leads Lewis Hamilton by 35 points in the drivers' standings.