Abrasive Max Verstappen will give Lewis Hamilton a title challenge like few others

On Saturday, Max Verstappen was frustrated at missing out on pole position for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. He should have been quickest but ended up third after putting a wheel on the grass on his final quick run. As he left his post-session interview, he brushed past Lewis Hamilton on the way to his. Hamilton looked back quizzically. Intentional or not? Impossible to say.

On Sunday, the pair made contact again, but this time in the heat of battle. From third, Verstappen took the lead by Imola’s first corner, as he launched his Red Bull off the line to perfection, passing team-mate Sergio Pérez and up the inside of the Mercedes into the first chicane.

In damp and tricky conditions he left Hamilton almost, but not quite, enough space as wheels touched, leaving his rival to ride roughly over the kerbs, damaging his front wing. Hamilton complained, but Verstappen kept the lead that he would never relinquish, leaving him just a single point off the championship lead. It was a move which not only highlighted the very fact that the threat Hamilton faces is a real one but also its very nature. In 2021, Hamilton could be facing his toughest competitor for some years.

It is wrong to say that Hamilton has waltzed to all his six Mercedes championships because competition has been lacking. It is true of his last two titles in 2019 and 2020 but Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari took some beating – though they ultimately beat themselves – and team-mate Nico Rosberg was no pushover. The strength of the 36 year-old's rivals since Rosberg left F1 has not been as significant or as sustained as his talent warrants. Aside from Vettel, Valtteri Bottas is too compliant, and Verstappen and Charles Leclerc have so far posed only an occasional threat. This, really, is the main point frustration of his dominance in the last three seasons.

In a car this quick, Verstappen offers something different. The fireworks that characterised the Rosberg-Hamilton years could be returning. Being unafraid to go wheel-to-wheel and not back down, even if it means contact, was part of Rosberg’s all-or-nothing approach. Did it work? Sometimes, but not always. From what we have seen so far, Verstappen – who has waited too long for a car this good – is not going to settle for second when he has a sniff of first.

Does this all mean Hamilton has to be wary of clashing on track? A couple of years ago Hamilton openly said that he treats the Red Bull man differently. Still, the incident on the first lap at Imola showed that, as much as the young pretender did not want to yield, neither did the current champion.

Some of Rosberg’s abrasive characteristics might be shared by the young Dutchman, but he will not be able to unsettle Hamilton within the team as the German did. He needs to be relentless in the car in his pursuit of the title, and all the indications suggest that he will be. Rosberg knew that disruption was his best tactic as he was likely to come off second best in a straight fight. Verstappen surely would not have a word of being second best in roughly equal cars – and he may even be right about that this year.

Verstappen looks as close a match for Hamilton as he has had for some years, maybe even ever. In our end of season driver ratings – based on our performance index model – for 2019 and 2020, these two men have been head and shoulders above the rest and with little to separate them. In fact, last year we rated Verstappen's season as marginally the better of the two.

The dynamic of the 2021 championship feels novel and exciting after just two rounds. Mercedes can be relieved to still lead both championships after a difficult weekend, but they know they will be tested this year.

In Bahrain we had a fight to the end and a healthy chunk of track limits controversy. At Imola we had a rare Hamilton mistake as he slid into the gravel and then drove into the barriers, dislodging part of his front wing. It was not as costly as it could have been – his fightback from ninth showed skill, but he was lucky to get there at all after being allowed to unlap himself after the red flag after Bottas and George Russell’s crash.

Is that Hamilton lapse something Verstappen has going for him? A weakness under pressure exposed? Has the pace and threat of Verstappen caused him to crack? Hamilton makes errors like this so rarely that we must wait for a pattern to appear – as it did with Vettel – before making any such bold proclamations.

What does Hamilton have going for him? He has been in this situation before, many times, which probably makes him favourite overall, but the margins are so small and any errors from either driver – there were several at Imola – could be costly. That is something for both fans and drivers to relish.

Has the intensity of a title fight ever been too much for him in his time at the top? Arguably never since his debut year in 2007. In 2017 and 2018 Hamilton was behind in the championship after 11 of 20 rounds and 10 of 21 rounds respectively. Then it was Vettel who found the pressure too much as Hamilton won his fifth and sixth titles with two rounds to spare each time. Even in 2016, when Rosberg won the championship, Hamilton dropped just 10 points in the five rounds after his heart-breaking retirement in Malaysia, winning the final four races from pole. In a 23-race season, his consistency (and reliability, too) will count.

Verstappen has denied that the pressure is greater or even different this year, saying the situation is worse in a poorer car. Perhaps he is right, but that is easy to say when there are 21 races to go. He has never been in this situation but that could be an advantage; his desire and hunger could help him be that little bit more ruthless than a man who has done it all. Then again, his uncompromising nature could force him to overdrive into mistakes and not for the first time.

Whatever happens, it will take every ounce of his skill to topple Hamilton, but he finally has the chance to prove himself a genuine equal. This season will be a measure of both men.

Russell apologies to Bottas for 200mph crash

By Philip Duncan

British driver George Russell has issued a public apology to Valtteri Bottas following their 200mph collision in Sunday's Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

Russell and Bottas crashed as they battled for ninth place in Imola. Russell, who felt Bottas had driven dangerously, called the Finn a "f------ p----" before confronting him and slapping him on the helmet.

But in a statement posted on social media on Monday evening, the 23-year-old Mercedes junior driver said: "Yesterday wasn't my proudest day.

"I knew it would be one of the best opportunities to score points this season and, when these points matter as much as they do to us right now, sometimes you take risks. It didn't pay off and I have to take responsibility for that.

"Having had time to reflect on what happened afterwards, I know I should have handled the whole situation better. Emotions can run high in the heat of the moment and yesterday mine got the better of me.

"I apologise to Valtteri, my team, and anyone who felt let down by my actions. That's not who I am and I expect more from myself, as I know others expect from me.

"I have learned some tough lessons this weekend and will come out of this a better driver and a better person for the experience."

Russell's post arrived after Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff branded his theory that Bottas deliberately caused their coming together as "bull----.

In the moments after Sunday's race, Russell suggested that Bottas would have behaved differently to another driver, with both men in contention to partner Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next season.

But an annoyed Wolff said: "That is bull----. The whole situation is absolutely not amusing for us. I am going to speak to George and make my point."

Wolff said a star was born when Russell stood in for a Covid-hit Hamilton at last December's Sakhir Grand Prix.

The Englishman was faster than Bottas throughout the race but was cruelly denied victory following a pit-stop mistake by Mercedes and then a late puncture.

Russell, now in his third season with Williams, believes he is ready to join Hamilton, having been on Mercedes' books as a junior driver in 2017.

But Wolff, who will have the final say on Russell's next move, took a dim view of his protege's actions in Imola.

He said: "Valtteri had a bad first 30 laps and shouldn't have been there, but George should never have launched into this manoeuvre.

"It meant taking risks and the other car in front was a Mercedes. For a young driver, you must never lose this global perspective, so there is lots for him to learn."

Bottas' Mercedes was severely damaged in the accident and Wolff believes the repair bill could have a knock-on effect in this season's development race.

A new budget cap means spending is limited to £105million. In previous campaigns, Mercedes have spent north of £300m.

Hamilton finished second to Red Bull's Max Verstappen in Imola and will head to the next round in Portugal a week on Sunday with a single-point advantage in the championship.

Wolff added: "It was a big shunt, our car is a write-off, and in a cost-cap environment that is certainly not what we needed and it is probably going to limit upgrades for us."

However, F1 managing director Ross Brawn moved to defend Russell.

Brawn, the former team principal of Mercedes, said: "Imola is quite a narrow track so there's not much space. When you add wet grass either side from the rain, it becomes very, very tricky.

"I'm sure both drivers will analyse the incident and learn from it but it did look like Valtteri drifted across and left George nowhere to go."