Hamilton claims he's one of only a few drivers who can challenge Verstappen

Lewis Hamilton firmly believes he is one of only a few drivers who can challenge Max Verstappen in the battle for the world title. There is one problem: according to the seven-time world champion, Mercedes are still lacking in many areas to challenge Verstappen.

The 2021 Formula 1 season is in the minds of many F1 fans. In the good sense, if you are a Verstappen fan, in the negative sense, if you are a Hamilton fan. Hamilton has had no chance of winning a world title since that moment in Abu Dhabi 2021. Hamilton has not won a single race since. Yet his confidence in his own ability has not diminished.

"I'm praying every day that we will close the gap and we will hit the ground running. I want to be fighting for the championship, I want to be fighting Max. I believe I am one of the only drivers who can do so. But we've got to have the package. Not only the car, but we've got to be operating better in our pit stops. There's so many areas we need to level up to be able to match the champions," Hamilton revealed in America.

James Allison already admitted on the F1 Nation podcast that Mercedes are behind Red Bull. Whereas Hamilton and George Russell raised certain issues about the car from day one, the team stuck to their own concept. That turned out not to work. Now Mercedes still has to go in pursuit, but Adrian Newey is said to think that at least until the new regulations are in place, it has no chance of beating the competition.