F1

Max Verstappen is “that close” to beat Lewis Hamilton in F1, ensures Nico Rosberg

by
Sabyasachi Biswas
March 22, 2021

Nico Rosberg, the former Formula One driver claimed Max Verstappen has a chance to win this year’s Championship. The Finnish feels the young Dutch is “that close” to dethrone the seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton.

The former Mercedes driver, who beat Lewis to claim the 2016 Formula One Championship looks upon Max as the only potential contender to rattle Lewis’s domination in the sports. Nico further praised Verstappen’s improved performance and skills at Red Bull for the last couple of years.

Yes, finally, here we go 💪 #2021 #UnleashTheLion #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/rQLQatpHpl

— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) March 12, 2021

When asked about the potential title favourite, Rosberg conveyed to Sky Sports, “It still has to go on Lewis because nobody can fathom someone actually beating Lewis throughout the entire season on points. So, the money would still have to go to Lewis.”

The 35-year-old German further asserted, “But Max Verstappen, in particular, is as close as ever before in pre-season in terms of the odds to beat Lewis to the championship. I don’t think anyone’s been that close for many, many years.”

Max Verstappen in 2021, what to expect?

Testing done ✔️ Positive vibes 🤘 #KeepPushing 🇧🇭 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/AgHxHoRybc

— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) March 14, 2021

Nico, putting his money on Lewis as the title favorite, also emphasized how good Max can be when the season begins. Verstappen, as the record states, has improved massively in the last few years.

The Dutch managed to stay in the top five in Drivers standings for back-to-back years on the trot. Placed at P3, just nine points behind Mercedes’s Valtteri Bottas, Max finished the 2020 season. With Max firing upfront, his constructor Red Bull will look forward to ending Mercedes’s dominance in the sport as well.

Max Verstappen finished first in the 2021 Bahrain pre-season test. (Photo by MAZEN MAHDI/AFP via Getty Images)

Talking about this season, the 23-year-old had one of the best pre-season testing of his career at Sakhir. The Red Bull prodigy was the fastest of all in the testing with his new RB16B. Now, it will be interesting to see how Max fares at Bahrain when the season goes underway on March 28.