Lewis Hamilton makes an audacious claim, says he was ‘as fast as Max Verstappen’ at the Dutch GP

The Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort delivered an electrifying spectacle characterized by fluctuating weather conditions. Max Verstappen triumphed, clinching his 11th win of the season, matching Sebastian Vettel’s nine consecutive victories. Conversely, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton grappled with a race riddled with obstacles, settling for sixth place. Despite the setbacks, Hamilton boldly asserted that his pace matched Verstappen’s.

Hamilton’s race day commenced on a sour note as he found himself starting from the 13th position, a result of a disappointing qualifying session. To counter his setback, the Mercedes man embarked on a unique tire strategy, opting for medium-compound tires while most of his competitors favored soft ones. This strategy was a gamble, an attempt to leverage tire longevity to his advantage.

As the race commenced under dark clouds and sporadic rain, Hamilton held his ground in the early corners. However, the capricious Dutch weather soon took center stage, intensifying the rain—many drivers, including those on soft tires, dove into the pits for intermediates. But Hamilton, alongside a handful of others, daringly stayed out on slicks, hoping for a drying track.

This ruined the Briton’s strategy gamble and threw him behind the pack. He then had his task set on his hands, to make up lost ground. He swiftly sliced his way through the pack and finished sixth behind Carlos Sainz. Post-race, Hamilton candidly remarked, as reported by GP Fans, “Today I had the pace. I was as fast as Max in the race.” He added, “But we were too far behind. It was P6, but it could certainly have been better if we had made the right decisions today.”

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Max Verstappen was unchallenged throughout the race and benefitted from the team’s strategic favor

Max Verstappen’s performance at the Zandvoort Grand Prix was a true demonstration of handling unpredictable conditions. From pole position, he skillfully retained his lead despite the initial rain. Although he briefly ceded the authority to Sergio Perez during the first round of pit stops, he surged back, outpacing his teammate by nearly 4 seconds per lap on the same tires.

Verstappen seized a strategic advantage with a well-timed undercut, surging past his teammate and maintaining the lead to the finish. Even with late-race rain and a red flag, Verstappen expertly managed the race restart, clinching a historic ninth consecutive victory. His immaculate showing thrilled the Dutch fans, solidifying his championship lead and notching his 11th win in 13 races that season.

Later in the race, rain returned on Lap 61, followed by a red flag on Lap 65, allowing Hamilton to switch to full wet tires for expected heavy rain. After the restart, Hamilton was on the rear wing of the Ferrari of Sainz. In the race’s final laps, Hamilton fiercely battled for fourth place, narrowly trailing Carlos. Despite relentless efforts, he finished sixth.

Hamilton finished over 13 seconds adrift of the race winner, Verstappen. In his ongoing battle with Fernando Alonso for third place in the standings, Alonso’s podium finish extended his lead over Hamilton. Hamilton eagerly anticipates improved strategic choices at the upcoming Monza race and aims to narrow the gap to his former teammate in pursuit of the coveted third position.

In case you missed it:

• Charles Leclerc blames collision with Oscar Piastri for Dutch GP DNF
• Charles Leclerc bashes the SF-23 for proving too ‘difficult to drive’ after Q3 crash at Zandvoort

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