Formula One title rivals Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen have gone wheel-to-wheel in all three races this season but both expect the racing to stay firm but fair as the pressure rises.
Hamilton’s victory in Portugal on Sunday stretched the Mercedes driver’s championship lead over Red Bull’s Dutch youngster to eight points.
In a sport where fine margins and small mistakes can have big outcomes, and with a record 23 races scheduled this year, the seven-time world champion sees plenty of battles to come.
Hamilton jokes: “We’re going to be sick of each other at the end I would imagine, or sick of racing, because there are so many races.”
The rivalry could boil over with so much at stake, 36-year-old Hamilton chasing records while 23-year-old Verstappen seeks a first crown, but the tone on Sunday remained one of mutual respect.
Verstappen adds: “I always have full trust in Lewis that we always give each other enough space.”
Hamilton echoes: “I just second that. I think it is naturally down to respect and I think both [of us are] very hard but fair and I think that’s what makes great racing and great racing drivers.”