Hamilton 'The Only Who Can Come Close' To Verstappen Says Albers

Tuesday, 09 January 2024 at 01:00

Dutch former Formula One driver Christijan Albers suggested in a recent interview that Lewis Hamilton is the only driver in F1 at the moment who can challenge Max Verstappen.

In 2023, there hasn't been a single driver that would be able to challenge Max Verstappen, so the triple World Champion won 19 out of 22 races.

Some believed his teammate Sergio Perez was able to match his pace during the first four races. However, the 26-year-old suggested in a recent interview that other factors, like unfortunate safety, car timing, etc., influenced those races' results.

The Mexican driver wasn't able to beat his teammate in the last three seasons, so statistically, there is a low chance he will manage to do so in 2024.

The big question, therefore, remains if any other team could build a car capable of challenging Red Bull. Even then, the team that manages to do so needs to have a driver capable of challenging the triple World Champion.

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Former F1 driver Christijan Albers believes there is currently only one driver on the grid who is capable of matching the Dutchman's pace, and that is Lewis Hamilton. He wrote in his De Telegraaf column

"For the neutral observer, I hope that Mercedes will come with a better car in 2024. Because if you look purely at the qualities of the current drivers, I think Lewis Hamilton is the only one who can come close to Verstappen."

Being the seven-time World Champion, Hamilton has proved a couple of times in the past he is able to deliver the results with the right car.

"I am mainly talking about the quality of being able to perform consistently and be very stable in lap times during a race."

Albers believes there is nobody else on the grid that could match the consistency and tire management skills of the two World Champions, who already went head-to-head once in 2021.

"Just like Verstappen, Hamilton is someone who can manage his tyres wonderfully. Assessing certain situations, feeling the rubber; in that respect they are alone."

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner stated he believed somebody would challenge Red Bull with Max Verstappen this year. Could it be Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes?