Verstappen: 'Both teams contributed a lot to conflict with Hamilton'

The current battle between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc is so far of a completely different nature to last year's championship battle. Nevertheless, Verstappen reckons the atmosphere could become tenser towards the end of the season.

There seems to be much more mutual respect than there was in the battle with Lewis Hamilton, where the atmosphere between the two rivals and their teams quickly turned grim. "We have a lot of respect for each other. If the other has done a good job, of course, you can say that," the reigning world champion told Servus TV in an interview.

Grim atmosphere in 2021 due to team bosses' behaviour

Last year's grim atmosphere was largely due to the behaviour of team bosses Toto Wolff and Christian Horner, between whom a veritable psychological war unfolded. "It was not only between the drivers but also between the two teams," clarified the Dutchman, who admits that the teams contributed greatly to the escalating conflict between last year's rivals.

Although the current rivals still get on well, the Dutchman stresses that the fight between himself and Leclerc is not yet at its height. "If it is, maybe it will be a bit different. We'll see, maybe at the end of the year", Verstappen concludes with a smile.