Lewis Hamilton gives his verdict on Lando Norris and McLaren’s chances of beating Max Verstappen for the championship

After a challenging start to the 2024 season, Lewis Hamilton ended the first half on a high note with a win at the Belgian Grand Prix. In an interaction with PlanetF1.com, the Mercedes-AMG star driver spoke highly of McLaren and Lando Norris.

Hamilton began his F1 career with McLaren in 2007. After missing out on the driver’s championship to Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in his debut season, the British driver did the unthinkable next year. He clinched his maiden world championship title in the 2008 season at the season finale in the Brazilian GP.

After spending a few mediocre seasons with the British outfit, Hamilton shifted his base to the Brackley-based Mercedes-AMG team in 2013. The German team dominated the turbo-hybrid era (2014–2021), propelling the #44 driver to win six world championships and securing his place as one of Formula 1’s greatest ever.

However, the significant regulation changes introduced in 2022 presented a formidable challenge for both Hamilton and Mercedes, as they struggled to match the pace of Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen. After a difficult period of nearly two and a half years without a competitive edge, the iconic pairing of Hamilton and Mercedes-AMG has shown signs of resurgence this season, securing two wins and two podium finishes in the last five races.

During a recent interaction with PlanetF1.com, Hamilton was asked to give a verdict on whether Lando Norris and McLaren could beat the current reigning champion duo (Verstappen and RBR).

“It is not impossible, but it is a huge, challenging task, but absolutely not impossible,” he said in response.

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📰‼️Sir Lewis Hamilton was asked about ‘McLaren’s chances against Red Bull, especially with Norris being 78 points down.’

“They’ve got two very strong drivers that are able to compete against, ultimately currently in the championship, one car that’s really up there doing a lot of the points scoring on the other side. So they’ve got something they can work with there, for sure,” Hamilton further added.

“Lewis is not just a driver, he’s an icon,” Toto Wolff on the new Mercedes era after Lewis Hamilton’s exit

After enjoying a largely successful 11-year stint with Mercedes-AMG, Lewis Hamilton is set to join Ferrari for the 2025 Formula 1 season. In light of the seven-time champion’s departure, team principal Toto Wolff has opened up about the challenges of finding a suitable replacement.

“Lewis is not just a driver, he’s an icon – on multiple levels. It’s clear for us that Mercedes’ team and the sport gets more media coverage just because of Lewis,” he stated, praising Hamilton. (via Formula.hu)

“A new era will start for Mercedes. I don’t know yet, who will be the next era’s important drivers, and I also can’t tell, whether we will as successful as we hope to be,” the 52-year-old Wolff added.