Formula 1 veteran and 105-time Grand Prix winner Lewis Hamilton didn’t mince words when discussing his old rival Max Verstappen’s controversial on-track behavior during the 2024 Mexican GP. Verstappen, the reigning champion, found himself slapped with a 20-second time penalty after his aggressive driving against McLaren’s Lando Norris – a move that saw Verstappen shove Norris off the track at Turn 4, followed by a wild lunge at Turn 8, forcing the Brit to take evasive action twice to stay in the race.
Hamilton, who finished sixth after a chaotic race, immediately recognized his rival’s tactics when he noticed the cloud of dust trailing in front of him. “As soon as I saw the plume of dust, I knew it was him,” Hamilton said to reporters. “Like, for sure it was him.”
Their rivalry is no secret, rooted in years of intense clashes, from the explosive 2021 season to notable incidents at Bahrain, Emilia Romagna, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Brazil. This rivalry has been marked by Verstappen’s no-yield style that Hamilton is all too familiar with. Known for a “yield-or-crash” approach, Verstappen has long pushed the limits, and Hamilton believes the stewards have been lenient with Verstappen’s actions in the past.
“It’s always been a grey area,” Hamilton emphasized, referencing incidents from their heated title fights. “That’s why he’s gotten away with it for so long. You shouldn’t be able to just launch the car up the inside and be ahead, then go off and still hold the position.”
Hamilton believes a rule update is overdue, stating, “There definitely has to be something done about it because it’s happening a lot now. You shouldn’t be able to come off the brakes, run more speed in, go off track, and still hold your place.”
The 2024 Mexican GP has highlighted once more the tension and controversy that defines the Hamilton-Verstappen rivalry. As the championship race intensifies, so does the call for stricter regulations on overly aggressive moves – a call that may lead to changes in F1’s approach to racing incidents and cement a legacy of fierce, fair racing.
