Hamilton at top of his game again: 'Adept at managing peak of performance'

The fact that Hamilton was so often slower than Russell was, according to himself, mainly due to the fact that he was experimenting a lot with the W13. The current number five in the World Championship called himself "the team's guinea pig" in June. Now that the 2022 car is a lot more competitive, Hamilton is also resurfacing. According to Alesi, this is not a coincidence, but simply a quality.

"When you are dealing with a driver who is so adept at managing the peak of his own performance, life becomes very difficult for his teammate," writes the Frenchman in his column at Corriere della Sera about the two Mercedes drivers. "I think of course of Sergio Perez [at Red Bull]. I think of Russell compared to Hamilton."

The former Formula 1 driver continued his story by saying, "The young Englishman is making his debut in the Mercedes. He has forced it since the first races, despite having an unsuccessful car. Unlike Lewis, who waited to fully commit given the car's initial shortcomings. But then Hamilton showed great quality, which complicated his partner's course. I am not criticising Russell. I am saying that even a talented young man can struggle in facing an older but experienced driver who is a great champion." Alesi does not find it surprising that it now seems like Russell has lost it for a while.

Russell was dozens of points ahead of Hamilton for most of this season, but the gap is now no bigger than 15 points. The seven-time world champion owes that mainly to his two recent second places, in the United States and in Mexico. With two GPs and a sprint race to go, Russell will have to pull out all the stops to stay ahead of his teammate in the world championship.