Adrian Newey Reveals Moment of Pressure for Max Verstappen in 2021 Title Battle with Lewis Hamilton

Has Max Verstappen begun to falter when competing with Lewis Hamilton? Adrian Newey shares his opinion.

Adrian Newey provides his insights on whether Max Verstappen has shown signs of succumbing to pressure.

Adrian Newey disclosed that the sole instance he observed Max Verstappen 'succumb to pressure' was during his 2021 F1 championship battle with Lewis Hamilton.

Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton faced off in a fierce battle for the 2021 drivers' title. The championship was decided under contentious conditions when Red Bull's Verstappen gained an advantage due to a significant mistake by race director Michael Masi.

Prior to that moment, the competition had been fierce, marked by several clashes and mishaps involving the two main rivals for the championship.

Looking back on the monumental clash, Newey admitted that Verstappen came under increased pressure following his collision with Hamilton at Silverstone.

Jake Humphrey, the host of the High Performance podcast, inquired whether Verstappen has ever exhibited any indications of breaking under pressure.

Newey responded: "I believe that in his championship victory in '21, especially after the Silverstone event, the rivalry on the track between Lewis and Max reached an extremely high level of intensity."

"Max had intense emotions regarding the incident at Silverstone. Before the crash, he was the leading contender for the championship. However, the accident caused him to drop out of the race, and in Hungary, he was again almost knocked out of the competition after being struck by Valtteri Bottas, which wasn't deliberate but still affected him significantly, resulting in barely any points."

"Transitioning from comfortably leading the championship to experiencing increased pressure, Mercedes significantly improved their car's speed towards the season's end. It's often simpler to chase than to be chased, and Max began to feel some pressure from the pursuit."

As Mercedes gained dominance towards the end of the 2021 season, Verstappen was compelled to adopt a more defensive stance.

In Brazil, he forced Hamilton off the circuit several times as the Mercedes driver tried to pass him at Turn 4.

Verstappen avoided receiving a penalty, something Newey acknowledged was lucky.

Newey mentioned that, in fact, he was likely fortunate to avoid a penalty for his driving in Brazil.

In Saudi Arabia, there was a bit of an altercation that was somewhat more significant. However, to be honest, Max's behavior in Brazil was probably inappropriate.

"He was definitely feeling some pressure. As for Checo Perez, it’s a common scenario: when a teammate they usually outperform starts closing the gap, it’s not because that teammate has suddenly improved. It was a similar situation with Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa near the end of 2010; the leading driver felt the pressure, which allowed the teammate to catch up."

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