Championship standings

second half of this year to be even stronger than the first.”

Rosberg, in highlighting what he saw as Verstappen’s superiority, had suggested that an F1 driver’s form tended to tail off past the age of 32. It was not a theory for which Hamilton had any time. “I’m 34, but I feel like I’m driving better than ever,” he said. “I hope you can see that I haven’t lost any speed.”

Hamilton leads a wandering life away from the track, often crossing two continents or more in the same week. His one concession to advancing age is that over the next month, he plans to work consciously on introducing more structure and discipline to his days.

“I’ve never been very good at planning,” he acknowledged. “Before I could go and party for multiple days. But now I need to make sure that I get my energy back. I’m a night owl; I don’t really sleep a huge amount. So I want to focus on shifting that, waking up early, seeing the sun rise wherever I am.

“I might try meditation, a few different things to help with a healthier lifestyle. I’ll be doing a lot more reading, too.”

Over at Red Bull, there is a growing danger that Pierre Gasly could be sacked before the end of the year. The Frenchman has earned just 63 points to Verstappen’s 181 and, in Hungary, was lapped by the Dutch prodigy for the second time in four races. “Pierre really needs to take some time out during the break and reflect,” said his team principal, Christian Horner. “He’s not in the mix at all.”