"I always have a Ferrari in front or a Mercedes but I am not that far away." "I wouldn’t call it frustrating, it’s not that I am miles off," he said. In eight races, Verstappen has never been worse than fifth but also never better than third, and he cynically commented "great!" on his total of five fourth-place finishes. While Mercedes is even more dominant than last year at this point of the championship, Verstappen is also enjoying a very consistent season - but mostly just off the podium. "We need quite a bit of luck for that," said Verstappen when asked what would lead to a repeat of his 2018 triumph. Verstappen was also hoping for a good race but the Dutchman, a five-time GP winner often known for his on track daring, didn’t expect to stop Mercedes from reaching the straight-win record. "Having to cool your car, (you have to) pull back from the car in front of you," Hamilton said. While the track with just 10 turns and the shortest lap time of all circuits usually offers limited possibilities for overtaking, it might become even harder this time. Hamilton led from start to finish in the race and Mercedes is heading for its sixth straight drivers’ and constructors’ championship.Īnd Hamilton wasn’t expecting an exciting race on Sunday, either. While Red Bull has not really threatened any of the Mercedes wins this season, Ferrari came tantalizingly close when Sebastian Vettel crossed the line first at the Canadian GP, only to lose his victory due to a five-second penalty which handed runner-up Hamilton another victory.Īfter winning the French GP in Le Castellet last Sunday, Hamilton said "I totally understand" when people call Formula One boring. Last year Max Verstappen won the race against the backdrop of the Austrian Alps. They have to open up the car to create cooling." "For sure all the engineers are on the edge of their seats, a bit nervous because it is very hot here … The cars are always on their limit with the cooling. ![]() "That’s going to be a problem all around," Hamilton said. Hamilton said that the heatwave in Central Europe is more of a concern, with temperatures around the high-altitude track expected to rise to 33 degrees Celsius (91 F). While he said he’s proud to help Mercedes set new benchmarks in the sport, the old McLaren record "is not anywhere near the top 50 of the list of priorities for me on the race weekend." ![]() Dating back to last year, Mercedes’ winning streak consists of 10 races, leaving the team one short of the all-time best mark set by McLaren more than three decades ago.Īyrton Senna and Alain Prost won the first 11 races of 1988, the season that would see Senna winning his first of three F1 titles.įor Hamilton, however, matching that milestone won’t be on his mind for Sunday’s race. Hamilton and fellow Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas have combined to win all eight races this season.
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