Lewis Hamilton "afraid of" Max Verstappen

Dutch racing driver Tom Coronel believes world champion Lewis Hamilton is "afraid of" rival Max Verstappen.

Hamilton became world champion for a fifth year in 2018 after a dominant season with Mercedes - whilst Verstappen finished fourth in the drivers' standings - finishing just a couple of points off Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen.

The Red Bull Racing driver had a slow start to the campaign, with numerous individual errors costing him races, but after the break - the 21-year-old drove superbly and is now being tipped by many to compete with Hamilton in 2019.

Verstappen's fantastic second half to the season saw him reach the podium seven times.

"He then almost finished every race on the podium, that is not possible in that car at all," Coronel told FORMULA 1.

Coronel also believes because Hamilton asks his Mercedes team radio where Verstappen is during races - that the English driver is scared of his rival.

"He asks about the position of Verstappen during a race about the onboard radio, even if there are still competitors in-between them; then you must know who he is afraid of," Coronel continued.

Verstappen's Red Bull will be driving with Honda power units in 2019, after the Japanese manufacturer took over responsibilities from Renault - and it is yet to be seen whether Honda can supply Verstappen with a package that's capable of challenging the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari.