Hamilton looks invincible: Brundle
> Mercedes ace a shoo-in to lift world title, says respected F1 pundit
SKY SPORTS F1 pundit Martin Brundle admits Lewis Hamilton looks unstoppable as the season comes to an end.
Hamilton won in Japan last weekend while title rival Sebastian Vettel was forced to retire.
The victory opened up a 59 point lead for the Mercedes driver and he could clinch the drivers championship in the next race at Austin, USA if he outscores Vettel by 16 points.
Brundle admits he can’t see anything but a Hamilton world title win ahead of the final four Grands Prix of the year.
“Hamilton is looking invincible,” the Sky Sports pundit wrote.
“Who can stop Lewis now from taking his fourth world championship, especially given the form he’s on at the moment?
“Hearing Lewis at the Skypad describing his pole lap was very revealing.
“Not just in the detail of what he was doing on any particular kerb, apex or steering wheel dial setting change, but a great reminder of how he is applying experience, knowledge, support and speed to treat every piece of track as a new opportunity.
“He’s knitting it all together, in and out of the car, making his life easier on race day when the prizes are handed out.”
Brundle is eager to see Hamilton, 32, stick around in F1 and challenge youngster Max Verstappen, who drives for Red Bull.
He added: “Max Verstappen kept Hamilton honest all race long after out-muscling his teammate Daniel Ricciardo down to and through Turn One before usurping Vettel.
“He’s turned around his dismally unlucky season and is on fire.
“The two Red Bull boys remain the strongest combo on the grid and no doubt the team will be working super hard to keep them both for 2019 and beyond.
“I really hope Hamilton stays around for a good few seasons because LH (Lewis Hamilton) vs MV (Max Verstappen) will be epic in more equal machinery.”
In related news, Hamilton’s main rival Vettel said yesterday that the 59-point lead that the Briton has at the top of the Drivers’ Championship has become “difficult” to catch.
And although Vettel is not giving up just yet, he admits it looks unlikely Hamilton will be caught.
“Of course now the Championship is more difficult and not finishing the race (in Japan) doesn’t help,” Vettel admitted.
“I also said to the guys to get back home and have some rest because it’s been a tough week with a lot of changes.
“We’ll come back with a better package to do well for the last four races and then we’ll see. Overall, I believe the team is in a good way.”
And Vettel has revealed his Ferrari had issues from the off in Suzuka.
“I don’t know if this situation has much to do with reliability,” he added. “But we didn’t finish the race, so there is a problem.
“I think it was a small issue causing a big one. We didn’t have power already at the start and we tried to reset everything getting the power back, but something didn’t work.” – Daily Star On the way to a second-round defeat of French Open winner Stan Wawrinka, Kyrg ios dropped a bombshell between points, saying “Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend. Sorry to tell you that mate” into a courtside microphone. In an oncourt interview after the win, Kyrgios’ explanation was less than convincing. “He was getting a bit lippy with me. (It was) kind of in the heat of the moment. I don’t know. I just said it.”