DOHA – As Mercedes now holds a pace advantage over Red Bull, former German Formula One driver Ralf Schumacher believes that Max Verstappen’s championship title chances have slipped considerably.
Verstappen had whittled away an eight-point lead in the drivers’ championship in the last two Grand Prix weekends as title rival Lewis Hamilton stormed to victory in Brazil and Qatar.
Schumacher believes it’s now Hamilton’s championship to win as Mercedes’ performance looks insurmountable as the Formula One giant heads towards two racetracks that should make the most of their straight-line speed.
Although Schumacher told Sky Sport Germany that “Mercedes is currently the more stable package”, he said it was not a reflection of Verstappen’s talents.
“Max gives everything and shows how good he is. Under normal circumstances though, he doesn’t stand a chance,” said Schumacher.
The former Formula One driver-turned-TV-pundit pointed to the string of misfortunes experienced by the Dutchman this season, which included losing a near-certain victory in Azerbaijan due to tyre failure as well as incidents at Silverstone and Hungaroring.
Schumacher does not see a way for Verstappen to claim this year’s title unless the Red Bull driver “gets lucky”.
“Maybe he has the luck he has lacked so far,” added the six-time Grand Prix winner, looking ahead to the races in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi.
“(Then again) if he had this (luck) at the beginning of the season, he might already be world champion now.” – Agencies, November 24, 2021
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