Hamilton sends clear message to Verstappen after intense Austrian GP duel

The pair went wheel-to-wheel twice during different phases of the race, first before the opening round of pit stops and again afterwards, when the Dutchman caught and eventually passed Hamilton before pulling away. In their first battle, however, the seven-time world champion had managed to hold his ground and keep the position. The stewards also noted the incident for a potential forcing another driver off track offence, but shortly afterwards cleared the Briton, taking no further action.

"He went off the outside. You don't expect to go around the outside of a champion. I wouldn't expect to go around the outside of him there and hold a line. So, he was behind at the apex and therefore he should have backed out, but he didn't. Left him just enough room," Hamilton commented after the race.

In the end, Verstappen produced a strong race to finish second, coming within touching distance of victory, while Hamilton slipped backwards on a three-stop strategy and eventually crossed the line in fifth, 26 seconds behind race winner George Russell.

The seven-time world champion admitted Ferrari lacked the pace to fight at the front during the Austrian Grand Prix, describing it as an extremely demanding race from start to finish. The Briton revealed that a poor getaway immediately put him on the back foot, although he managed to recover by overtaking Charles Leclerc and briefly believed he could stay in the fight with George Russell. However, that optimism quickly faded as rear tyre degradation became a recurring problem on every stint, preventing him from maintaining a competitive pace.

Hamilton also explained that the SF-26 was particularly difficult to drive due to an unstable balance, while Ferrari had already been significantly down on straight-line speed throughout Friday. He added that, although the exact reasons behind Sunday's performance still needed to be analysed, the lack of grip meant Ferrari simply could not keep up with its direct rivals. Despite the disappointing outcome, he praised the team's work on strategy and pit stops, stressing that everyone had done everything possible to maximise the result and secure valuable points.

Looking ahead, Hamilton acknowledged that Ferrari will need to push hard to bring its next power unit upgrade as soon as possible. He explained that the biggest limitation compared to its rivals was not necessarily outright power, but the way energy deployment tailed off at the end of the straights. According to the seven-time world champion, Mercedes in particular was able to keep deploying for much longer, something Ferrari will need to understand and improve, although he admitted that a solution is unlikely to arrive in the short term.