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Lewis Hamilton has been tipped to challenge Max Verstappen by former Red Bull driver Christian Klien. The Mercedes driver has spent the last two seasons in a car that was just not capable of challenging for the title. As a result, there has been a sense of frustration in his driving which has been evident sometimes in front of the media as well.
The last two seasons have for the first time seen Lewis Hamilton not win even a single race. This is unprecedented for the Brit and it has seen perceptions change in the eyes of a few pundits. The Mercedes driver has seemingly been pushed off the pedestal of being the best driver in F1.
Having said that, former Red Bull driver Christian Klien feels Lewis Hamilton could still challenge Max Verstappen if he has a better car under him. In an interview with RacingNews365.com, he said:
“You should not underestimate Lewis. He is a top-class driver. He hasn’t lost any of his qualities. A bit like Fernando Alonso – give him the right car and he’ll show what he’s able to do. If he has the right car and finds extra motivation, then he can definitely be one who gives Max a run for his money.”
Talking about Lewis Hamilton's teammate George Russell, Klien said:
“Russell is good. He showed that last year that he is ready. This year, he struggled but that’s part of the learning curve. He’s still young and has many years to go. I definitely think he can be the captain at Mercedes in the future."
Lewis Hamilton was much better than George Russell in 2023
Comparing the two Mercedes drivers, Klien felt that Lewis Hamilton had the edge over his teammate George Russell this season. The season saw Lewis outscore George quite comfortably this time around and there were many races where he was definitively better than his teammate.
Talking about the two drivers, Klien felt that Lewis had the edge although Russell did not have luck on his side either. He said:
“This year, Hamilton was much better than Russell. Last year, the roles were reversed. Maybe Hamilton was not 100 percent motivated last year because he was a seven-time world champion with a car that was not performing. He invested a lot of time helping the team improve a car that was not competitive."
He added:
“Lewis showed his class, with some very good races where he showed what the car was capable of. He was more consistent than George. George was unfortunate but also had some problems with the way the car worked.”
It will be interesting to see how Mercedes looks at the start of the 2024 F1 season because that could play a role in what the future holds for the team.
