If you had ten quid to bet on either Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton to win the 2021 Formula One Championship driver’s title, who would you put your money on (and no sitting on the fence)? The surprising thing is that it appears that Hamilton would make a similar decision to you and I, and place his ten pound on Verstappen.
Don’t you just hate it when sport becomes predictable. With just under two weeks left for the Tour de France, barring any unfortunate mishap, it looks like Tadej Pogacar (The Pod) will wear the yellow jersey onto the Avenue des Champs-Élysées on the 26 July. So is the Formula One driver’s title also to be this predictable?
Leading up to last nights Austrian F1 Grand Prix, Autosport.com quotes Hamilton as predicting an “easy cruise win” for Formula One rival and polesitter Max Verstappen. Heading into the Austrian GP, Verstappen already had a 18-point lead in the drivers’ championship over Hamilton.
Couple this with Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff admitting, seven days ago, on Motorsport.com that the team would ‘continue to stick to our principle of putting our resource into 2022.’ It that not a surrender flag being raised?
The third point to consider is the timing of Mercedes announcement that they have extended Hamilton’s, by mutual agreement, and he would stay on for the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
It appears that Mercedes have conceded defeat and and now looking ahead to 2022.
What is missing is that never-give-up fight. Where is that fight-to-the-end attitude.
The Tour de France has only just gone into the alps, yet The Pod immediately seized the overall lead with a dominant display on Stage 8 putting valuable time on his rivals, well those that are left.
The difference between the 2021 Tour and the 2021 F1 championship is that The Pod’s rivals unfortunately were disseminated in the opening two days with many involved in some horrific crashes. Some forced out with injury while others will eventually limp into Paris with very sore bodies.
In F1 we have Mercedes announcing defeat before the halfway mark on the calendar. Maybe they know something we don’t and expect more Verstappen dominance? Now, where’s that ten quid, I’m off to the TAB?
Comments