“It’s definitely a three-way title fight”
Lewis fired up by red bull and ferrari
Lewis Hamilton says what is shaping up to be a three-way battle for the world championship this year ranks as the biggest challenge he’s had since he joined Mercedes.
The four-time world champion currently sits atop the championship, having scored two victories so far this year. However, Hamilton’s lead is a slender one, with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel just 14 points back, and Monaco GP winner Daniel Ricciardo 38 behind.
Both Vettel and Ricciardo have also equalled Hamilton’s victory tally this year. With each driver winning twice across the first six races of the season so far.
Ahead of this weekend’s seventh round in Montreal, Canada, Hamilton said he was enjoying the renewed competition. “It definitely is a three-way fight for it this year,” said Hamilton. “Ferrari, I think, are still the strongest. Their car was quick in Monaco, their car was working quite well through the whole season so far and they have dropped the ball a few times and we’ve capitalised on that so we are further ahead than we would be if everyone had done the same job.
“But I still feel they’re the strongest and Sebastian has been doing the strongest job. But it is a three-way battle. I think Red Bull potentially have an upgrade coming engine-wise, so it will be interesting to see their performance and they will continue to get stronger through the year.
“I’m telling you, we’re doing all we can to win these races – and then Red Bull wins, then Ferrari wins, and then we win. It’s great to have that and personally I love it. It’s the biggest challenge that I’ve had with my boys [Mercedes], but I’m loving that challenge. I’m loving having to dip super deep into my technical knowledge and learning more and how I can communicate, how I can pick the right set-up – all the different things.”
Red Bull’s title chances likely hinge on the progress of Renault’s update package, which is due to arrive in time for the race in Canada. However, Red Bull may not run it this weekend due to only six units being ready across the six Renault-powered cars.
Ricciardo believes a third win before the summer break will be essential if he is to be a dark horse for the title.
“Lewis still has a good buffer on me, but it’s not impossible,” he said. “We’ve probably got to prove on at least one other circuit before the break that we can win again, and then maybe we’ve got a nice little outside chance.”