Lewis Hamilton fell short of his eighth world title last season after losing to Max Verstappen on the last lap of the final round in Abu Dhabi, in an all-or-nothing duel after arriving level on points.
The 37-year-old Briton has a contract with Mercedes until the end of the 2023 campaign, so he has at least two more attempts to overcome the mark set by Michael Schumacher of seven Formula 1 championships, although he has already passed the barrier hundred wins (103) and pole positions (103).
Looking ahead to this course, Hamilton commented that he would be “a more aggressive driver” after his controversial struggles with Verstappen in 2021, but a former category winner, 10-time grand prix winner, Gerhard Berger, was not sure that attacking rivals more was “the right idea”.
“I don’t know if I would be aggressive like Max [Verstappen] was, if this would work,” the Austrian said. “For me, it was very clever the way he sometimes gives in, not to crash, but to get it back in another way.”
“I see that with all the experience that Lewis [Hamilton] has, he is very composed, he has taken his opportunities all the time. Except at Silverstone, he was perfect,” said the former Ferrari and McLaren driver, among others.
Berger enjoyed a good relationship with one of the best in history, Ayrton Senna , when he shared a garage with the Brazilian at McLaren, and also spent part of his career competing in an era dominated by the duel between the Paulista and Alain Prost , who was a pilot with a totally different style.
Asked by Motorsport.com if he thought Hamilton resembled the colder Frenchman than Senna, the Austrian said “he was somewhere in the middle”, with Verstappen’s aggressiveness more reminiscent of the three-time champion’s approach.
“In the end, for me, after these 45 years that I’ve been here, Lewis [Hamilton] and Senna are the two best I’ve ever seen,” he insisted. “I still put Senna number one, because the charm and personality were another level, but in sports, Lewis is as good as Senna.”
The former driver felt that the reigning world champion “had to be aggressive” when fighting for the title last year “because Hamilton’s car was better”, and was curious to see if the Dutchman could change in 2022.
“This year, if the car is the best, maybe it will adapt, or it will do it in a different way, because maybe it doesn’t need that aggressiveness,” he said. “Because when you’re so aggressive and it doesn’t work, and you touch yourself or get out, it hurts.”
“Sometimes it’s better (to do) what Lewis (did) last season, to say ‘okay, it’s worse for me if I lose points in this race, because I’m going to make it up some other way’. It all depends on how good it is. your outfit,” Berger said.
