Is Verstappen the Strongest Title Rival Hamilton’s Had? 

Well duh, his toughest title rival was his McLaren pit crew in 2012

I think that Verstappen is the toughest one in the driving aspect, but I think that Rosberg was the toughest one because of the psychological aspect because they having the same car then creates additional pressure, meanwhile, with Verstappen, Lewis can say the car was better, and that's why he was beaten, or at least that's how I see it.

I think it was Rosberg. Going against your team mate and best mate will always be the toughest challenge. The phycological battle was immense

I just cannot believe we're having these discussions about someone who was a kid just a few years ago that everyone hated for being too aggressive and reckless. It's such an amazing thing to watch him realize himself and become a top tier driver right in front of our eyes. Edit: I also just want to say, he's doing all of this while Lewis is arguably at his absolute prime. Unreal.

I remember back in 2007 everyone was really hyping up Lewis, while Fernando was being made to look like the bad guy for some reason. Kimi got slept on after Australia but BOOM. Silent assassin indeed.

So far, I think Verstappen is putting Hamilton under a lot more pressure than anyone else. This is probably the best version of Lewis we’ve ever seen and Max is giving him a proper run for his money. Obviously we’ll have to see if he keeps it up, but he’s doing a great job atm. I personally wouldn’t say that Rosberg was Hamilton’s toughest competitor - I still think going up against Alonso in his rookie season was tougher, but that’s just my opinion. Great video Aldas! Nearly at the big 100K! 🎉

Don't forget Rosberg.. He not only beat Lewis , he pissed off everyone at both Mercedes and Formula 1 doing it

His biggest rival was the fast but fragile mclaren. Everytime he had an awesome race, the mclaren let him down. Thats one of the reasons he went for mercedes.

I think Max and RB are the strongest combo Hamilton has ever faced. People may say Max is all hype but Max has made world champions not look like world champions in the seven years he has been in the sport, all the while not being in a Mercedes. A few that come to mind are; Rosberg: Silverstone 2016, Brazil 2016 Vettel: Silverstone 2019, Brazil 2016 Hamilton: Brazil 2019 All of these performances happened from the ages of 18 to 21. He is doing amazingly well so far this year. Taking it race by race and doing his best. We shall see how the season goes.

"But a different version of Seb..." I miss that version :(

He learned those mind games from Michael back when he used to play mind games with nico so he learned from the best haha

I think you're doing Fernando dirty there. Lewis might have been a rookie, but he'd been part of the McLaren programme for a long time and had a lot of time to get to know the team and the car. Alonso had to deal with a team switch, a completely different car (with a lot less testing time than Lewis) and a switch in tyres from Michelin to Bridgestone, all while the team clearly favoured Lewis and he still managed a tie.

I think it’s Alonso, he is the most underrated team mate of Lewis. We didn’t see the full potential of that rivalry because of his exit from McLaren. Kimi and Massa are very underrated rivals of Lewis too.

When was the last season red bull slacked after the summer break? I cannot remember one, they always out developed everyone in the second half of the season. They are also working so good together as a team. When checo let max pass and the radio afterwords should frighten mercedes and Lewis.

My 12 mins have been used well thanks Aldas for the incredible videos

Rn Max has the right mix of Talent, Youth and experience and also he is a very strong person mentally

I think it's fair to say Max is Lewis's strongest rival yet. Considering Lewis is on his best form ever, leading him in the championship is mighty impressive.

Actually I think Kimi's raw pace was even better in 2007 since his Ferrari (much like Alonso in 2012) shouldn't have won against the stronger McLaren. Ferrari Mechanics said that he was constantly outpacing the car going faster than the programs they used to optimise pace in the corners predicted was possible.

Nobody brothers to analyse their mistakes when they're winning, only when they're losing. It's easier to mask your mistakes when you got the fastest car on the grid. You'll just keep winning by outpacing everyone even if you do some mistakes on the way. But now it's not the case, RBR has got enough pace to capitalise on every mistake the Merc makes. The undercut on French GP was something that they didn't even expect but It did fuck them over.

He has been the most consistent driver this season. He has finished 1st or 2nd in every race he finished. And even in the race, he did not finish (Baku), he was going to get an easy win.

In order to finish ahead of Hamilton, Verstappen needs Perez to hassle Hamilton's race day strategy. Perez is the king maker. Hamilton needs Bottas to guard Perez.

Also verstappen doesn't need to play mind games with Hamilton, a Mercedes not winning by 50 seconds is enough of one in its self

Raikkonen, Vettel and Rosberg were obviously the strongest contenders considering they beat him in the decider.

We're talking about a "top 2" championship.. Take a hint from the only other "top two" to defeat Lewis. Nico Rosberg on Max - "Max is one of the best drivers we've ever seen in Formula 1"

The fact that Verstappen is Hamilton’s title rival is a testament to how far he’s come. Glad he’s not being called Crashtappen anymore.

Max is challenging the title very early in his career, that is amazing, while Lewis experience and years had him to be a consolidated champion. In any case WOW to young early Max!!.

6th Alonso.. Hamilton has never won a championship when he was fighting Alonso.. End of the discussion.

It's too early in the season to say max,but vettel Massa Nico and Alonso are still ahead for now

One could say... in 2007 Kimi kept ... cool *fingerguns*

Aldas, pls make a part 2 of this.

I don’t know, I think Alonso should be higher on the list there.

RBR strong part is backend of the year. Now they have matched in the initial part then it puts them in good position to challenge the title

I think Max is just behind Rosberg at this moment. Hamilton is so much better than in the last "title deciders" and Mercedes's dominance and reliability is really impressive. Max leading (and probably extending the lead in the next races) the championship is something only a handful of people could do, and if he manages to beat Hamilton this year, he'll be forever in the Hall of Fame of F1.

No, Vettel was imo. Seb made a title challenge in a car that didn't deserve that.

I still say Felipe is his greatest tittle contender. Maybe because it still half of season. And 2017 and 2018 Lewis made a comeback.

Undoubtedly Alonso

"he wasn't at his best" what he literally just won back to back world Championships that is a statement I can't agree with

I was waiting for this Aldas. Thanks

If you are going against Lewis you are going against british biased media who try to bring you down mentally however they can. You have to withstand all the bullshit and be mentally strong. 2021 Max used to so strong he used to channel all the negative energy into positive and putting out displays worthy of champion in the end he deserved the title.

Amazing how just 3 years ago Max was crashing or making mistakes at every race at the start of 2018, and now he has immensely improved to title fighting status

It has to be Nico Rosberg, he has been the only driver to get that extremely high competitor that Lewis can be. Now Max may be able to do it, it just hasn’t happened yet

It is still too early in the season to tell for sure. For all we know, Mercedes could still surge past Red Bull in the development race if they get their act together just like they did against Ferrari in 2017 and 2018.

Has any other driver had more hype than Max verstappen? There’s been more promo and ads about this fight than any other - like literally a few years ago we had Ferrari vs merc (I’m not mentioning about the ending just the build up and hype of it)

lewis raced against prime nando and seb who are proven greats, let’s not jump the gun with the verstappen hype

If Verstappen or Hamilton win the title with races to go, it would mean that neither was a title rival to the other (according to rules in the beginning of the video). So the answer to the question should be let's see in December. Also it was probably the toughest for Hamilton in 2009, 2011-2013 when he got slapped up by Vettel and Button.

Lewis wasn’t challenged in his championship years. Maybe Nico but I don’t see him as a top 20 all time. So max has been the only one with competitive machinery and great talent he had to face. Vettel just didn’t have the car and his talent didn’t match the car anymore

Max is without a doubt the greatest driver he’s faced. Just look at how many times he’s handed Lewis his arse back in wheel to wheel combat

Man, Aldas, I really wait for your videos😂 they are so so good!? Amazing dude

Yes max is and about time we all been waiting for this fight for along time the two best drivers on the grid I still do think Hamilton is still a little better but saying that the last 3 or 4 races max is getting on the same level as Hamilton. As a Hamilton fan it nice to see he has got some fight on his hand and mercedes needs now to book up there ideas because red bull are better at this point and about time to.

Max is so strong this season that every time he finished the race he is in top 2 this reminds him of Marc Marquez in moto gp he too is so consistent and because of that he mentally weakened dovi and win the titles hope max does this too

I agree with Aldas his line up although only the top 5 ghehe I checked out of F1 when it was just a train wreck circling the drain. Anyway never really understood why people are harping on Max from the day he started in F1 he's been ridiculed some do hate him. When he makes mistakes fans of F1 pounce on him like cats finding catnip. Meanwhile he has car control like not many other drivers have, besides He showed what the future was bringing in 2015 when he started for RB in Spain the Merc's self destructed on track on the first lap and from that moment Max just controlled the race in a car that many others that followed him .... Albon Gasly.... could not. Perez is the first new driver in Red Bull and although it took a couple of races, shows he can get close to Max and even best him. Daniel Ricciardo left RBR because he knew Max would overwhelm him, and he knew RBR would prop up Max as the future Champion. Max made waves in F1 some good some bad hell they changed a rule because of him. He's outspoken goes against the establishment with out breaking gentlemen agreements (Mazespin) but overall keeps his nose clean (except the Ocon incident oh boohoo) He's a breath of fresh air. Is Hamilton cracking under pressure I dunno yet but I find it to early but one thing is for sure the merc's team is. Is Hamilton a great driver yeah I agree to some extend but the merc dominance since 2014........ yeah well there is that I theorize that if Hamilton did not moved to the merc's but to ferrari... Maybe Rosberg would have had al those championships with Hamilton nipping at the heels of Rosberg and RBR now with Max..... Just saying.

Aldas please do a video talking about Sebs season so far In 2021 and emphasize on his form and what you think it will be like for the rest of the season please🙏💚💚

Rosberg would have to be the strongest imo as he got into his head but also being in the same team you have no-one to back you up and make it easier (Perez is doing the world of good to Max's title hopes where as Bottas isn't really there for Lewis this year)

Max got the job done, he is the ultimate challenge for Hamilton

Assuming that the RB car remains on a par with the Merc, and the team just continues to improve its tactics (something they used to be renowned for, but which they had a serious drop in over the last few years. In fact I'd say it was only in Monaco did we start to see the RB of old, tactically), I have no doubt that Max will take it all the way. It's nigh on impossible to get into Max's head, he shrugs everything off, even compliments (though he is polite about them of course) - and though Lewis has a thick skin (he has to have one because of all the sh!t flung his way over the years. Fan or not of him, that has been frankly abhorrent), it took Rosberg to show how to get under that skin and use Lewis's nature against himself. It helped Nico that they had been close friends, almost fraternal in nature for years, but it cost Nico that friendship to win the title by occasionally playing dirty - that started in '14 but then escalated into something I found very sad by '16. I'm not sure if they've made up, I would hope so, but they certainly don't seem to be like those two young team mates in 2013, doing daft things like jumping on each other in parc fermé out of sheer joy. I don't know about anyone else, but I find that sad. Max isn't the one trying to play silly head games. His team management might be trying to, but Lewis just ignores it all, at least it seems that way. Any comments or actions coming Max's way appear to get swatted away like a gnat. Alongside his obvious natural gift (in which I'd suggest he's the closest on the grid to Lewis), he's matured into a very thoughtful driver. Like Lewis, I see elements of both Senna & Prost in him. The naturally-gifted incredible car control and the ability to see the big picture and do some mental gymnastics at 200 mph! I'd say they're both that good; Lewis's only overt advantage is his experience. Whoever wins the championship - and I am _so_ torn on that one, it's going to be a classic year for a title fight. I'd love to see Lewis get his 8th championship - one of those "I was there!" things (ok, watching the TV). We don't know how good the new Merc (or any other team's car) will be next year, so this might be his last chance. After all, it doesn't have to be a long decline for a team to end up at the back of the grid. At the same time, I'd love Max to beat Lewis while he's still in his prime. Hopefully that should a least reduce the volume of "he had the best car" or "Lewis wasn't as good as he used to be" comments from the armchair racers who've only been watching F1 for a few years 🤦 I'm a "let the best driver win" sort of person, so I don't have many dislikes regarding all the drivers (there are currently two for whom I don't have any particularly positive feelings: neither of our protagonists or their team mates), and I am chuffed for whoever wins a race. But I've never been so torn up regarding who I want to win a championship before!

People say Fernando's 2010 Ferrari was slow, no it wasn't. Massa was 2nd in the standings even after a handful of races. The car was slippery in a straight line and very agile in corner entry if you watch the pole laps. It was also very reliable, more than the Red Bull or McLaren. Alonso also had consistency like no other so that's why he kinda deserved 2010.

For the life of me, I don't understand how Rosberg is number one? He's slower than Fernando, possesses far worse racecraft and isn't nearly as devious or politically savvy. Wanna talk mind games? Alonso attempted to blackmail Ron Dennis to get lewis under control. The man threw away a championship winning car/team to beat Hamilton. Can't get more political than that. It legit cost mclaren the constructors and mercedes $100m. It was this very act that eventual led to Daimler buying Brawn. Then there's the hiding of data, Hungary, Indianapolis. Requesting Lewis doesn't complete the first in season test. Tried to convince Ron Dennis to under fuel lewis so he'd run out of fuel during a race. Nico has nothing, and I mean nothing on Fernando in terms of mind games. All Rosberg did was whine about chassis, and mechanics. Utilized banned (internally) engine modes and lie. Then when all else fails ram into him. It crazy how rampant revisionism is in modern f1. All of a sudden, ferrari wasn't a challenge in 17/18. God the circle-jerking in this sport is disgusting. Minimizing the accomplishments of someone doesn't improve the status of your preferred driver. Max is a elite generational talent. Lewis is an elite generational talent. Alonso is an elite generational talent. Rosberg was and will never be considered a generational talent. He was fast with decent race pace but more often than not would lose out to Hamilton. His championship hinged on lewis encountered technical issues and the associated penalties. Even in 2014 when he convincingly outqualified lewis, it was 11 wins to 5... Fernando is far and away lewis' strongest teammate and championship rival.

« the most exciting title decider of all time », little did he know…

When Seb was at RB he would be unstoppable in the 2nd half the season

This season is yet to conclude. After seeing 2010 Triple battle, 2016 Endurance battle, Rosberg knew he couldn't replicate it again, it looks like verstappen might need to keep doing this for next 10 races to stay in the conversation.

the only complaint i have about this, even though hamilton wasnt in for the title fight in 2012, alonso most definitely impacted hamilton more than in 2008. alonso was always in the way of him

Hamilton era champions like Button, Kimi, Vettel and Rosberg proved they could beat him on their day. But only 2 of them were seen in the same equipment. As Mercedes have been unchallenged in the hybrid until this year its a little tough to tell who else could have been a driver competitor. But that's F1 for you, just wish the FIA went out of there way to curb Mercs advantage like they did with Red Bull, Renault, Ferrari, Mclaren etc. over the years!

I'm just gonna say this... Max would eat Lewis alive if they race on the same team/car!

I was also thinking about that and you made the video. It's either Alonso or Max. But judging by the unlikely mistakes Hamilton is making recently, it seems like Max's speed is really something else.

I think we need a recap now after MAX won

What a fantastic channel! Congratulations! You are very close to get 100.000 subscribers... and here you have a new one. Cheers from Spain :)

I think everyone has failed to notice one very important but key difference to the title fight. No doubt Lewis is under more pressure, I don't think it is because because of Max driving, with his level of experience, I doubt any driver will intimidate him. Its the difference development strategies persued by Mercedes and Red Bull that is making the difference. Red Bull have brought some sort of new aero upgrade or part to almost all the races so far. Mercedes on the other hand have not brought much aero upgrades if any since Bahrain! They only fixed their rear instability issues since testing and have lefted there. I think Mercedes are gambling on this year. If they lose the title this year its not going to matter if they can dominate in the regs coming next year. Red Bull on the other hand see this as their best shot to best Mercedes even if it means being in a worse shape for next year. It will be an interesting time come the Summer break.

I was hoping for an Aldas vid today 👍🏻

Max is honestly more talented than Ham. He beats him 1v1 every time

Fun fact, using today’s scoring system, Alonso scored more points than Lewis in 2007… Lewis beat Alonso 9-6 in qualifying, but in the race it was 9-6 to Alonso… Also, Lewis had loads of testing in that McLaren in ‘06, whereas Alonso had much less and was coming from a completely different team and car (tyres, balance etc.) Lewis was just incredible, but to me, 2007 was a fair representation of their skills - Lewis was the better qualifier, Alonso was better in the race. I think that stayed the case until 2014, at which point Lewis became best in all categories (except starts!)…. Thoughts????

If we put Actual Rivalries. Vettel is P2. Not because of 2017 2018 and 2010. Because of 2025, Sebastian Was Monstrous that Season In a car up to 1 second a lap slower than the Merc and he proved time and time again he is a threat to the Mercedes. He was constantly hassling Rosberg and even Lewis and going into USA , Sebatian Was P2 in the Championships Maybe 2017 was better as Ferrari were closer to Mercedes and Vettel once again proved his worth 2018 was not. Rivalry up until R9. It was , after it was Never Sebastian Made Mistakes. Ferrari botched upgraded and strats while Merc Propspered

To all of those who suggest rosberg or even Vettel, Hamilton has already stated it before when Alonso announced his retirement that he is the fastest and toughest rival that he has ever faced.

Nope, It was Rosberg coz he was only one who did it in the same car

Nico wasn't the biggest Lewis' rival but Lewis was the biggest Nico's rival. I heard that Nico deleted all social media and stoped meeting with friends because he was focused on fight with Lewis.He just practiced a lot. He was mentally broken. Nico said in his podcast that he is fragile preson and I saw this in interviews form 2016.

2016 Rosberg for sure

Massa was one of the best,if it wasn't for Ferraris poor pitstop in Singapore the title would be his Also what i miss from this rivalry is a bit of spice,they seem to be still too calm and friendly,and the best rivalries are always hectic,like Rosberg v Hamilton and Senna v Prost

Simply yes. The cars are so close to eachother and Verstappen is at least on Hamiltons level. I personally think he is one of the most talented if not the most talented driver who raced in F1. Maybe only Senna was better. JUST MY OPINION!!!

it still hurts today, looking at how the relationship between Hamilton and Rosberg got destroyed throughout their intense rivalry...

In terms of combination of team and driver, either Max or RB Seb is the strongest. In terms of driver only, either Nando, Seb (both Ferrari and RB) or Nico is the strongest.

to me rosberg will always be his toughest title challenger ever. same team,technically same car..for years. as for max,i'd say max is lewis's toughest challenger in the active driver category. toughest challenger ever will always be rosberg. rosberg gave lewis a very² tough time during their rivalry years ago.

A Close second to Rosberg. He was messing up with hamilton's head.

Mercedes have no answer to Red Bull this season. Today, Lewis asked Bono, ‘what can I do?’ This is the first time in the last eight years that Mercedes have had a serious rival, and they do not have an answer. Therefore, they are pressured into making mistakes, all too evident in the last few races. Don’t get me wrong, I am a massive Lewis fan, but it is great to see someone giving him a run for his money. It is also good for the sport that we have the likes of Lando, George, Charles and Carlos waiting in the wings…

If we ever saw Max and Nico race 1v1 then we'd know. Or Max in a Merc so he's got the same chance Nico had in 2016

The one thing i am worried about is this season ending up just like Seb and Ferrari in 2017 and 2018. Both those years ferrari started out strong but past the half way point lewis and mercedes always took it to another level. Their ability to keep improving till the end of the season is what gave them the faster car by the end of the season which was the reason hamilton won those two titles by a comfortable margin.

Lewis vs Seb when you take into account he had to race against him in the red bull and the Ferrari, in the V8 and hybrid era. Its 4-2 Seb in that battle.

I'm curious about where Verstappen is now on this list

In my book Rosberg give Hamilton a run for his money.

I don't think anyone will be harder for Lewis than Nico. The shared history, past friendship, being teammates, etc. Is a big thing.

I think its quite early to comment on that. Should have waited till Abu Dhabi GP to make this video. Personally i think max is still not toughest Hamilton rival.Seb was giving tough time at start of 2018 season and look what happened

2021 Lewis was far more consistent (fewer mistakes in race starts, fewer mistakes but still more than Max) and faster in qualifying than he was with Rosberg. There were also so many races where the Mercedes was much quicker and Verstappen was lucky to be 2nd and not 3rd. But Lewis can argue that Baku, Monaco, Austria and a few other races were evidence that Red Bull were at times the faster car. I still remember how many times Lewis lost like 5 or 6 places in race starts unforced by anyone in 2016 (Australia, Bahrain, China, Canada wasn't so bad and he only had to repass Sebastian Vettel to win, Italy, Japan). Granted Rosberg also lost places in: Australia, Canada where he also spun late on trying to pass Verstappen, and Germany. Then there were: Spain where they both took each other out, Austria where Nico broke too late and broke his wing on Lewis. But with all those mistakes and incidents they did their best and it was brilliant to see. Also Mercedes always said that the 2016 car was the best for the drivers to drive or "racing nirvana".

Max as a driver alone? I don't think so. But the combination of Max and this Red Bull could definitely be his hardest title fight yet. And the mistakes Lewis and Mercedes are making are obviously not helping him. Either way super hyped for the rest of this season. Let's hope it stays this close 🙏

agreed for now. Think you can do a second review of max in october to see if he is really like rosberg until the end.

IT WAS ALONSO

this f1 season is beginning to keep all the promises. After last year its so nice to see such a competative field. I hope Max does it.

Wouldn't his strongest title challenger be the only one that has beaten him in recent years, Rosberg?

Awesome video. really appreciate the research and the analysis Aldas!

Max said himself that what he had with Seb in his Ferrari days wasn't considered a challenge at all. So I think maybe Max understands how to beat Hamilton. And I think it's about getting in his head and qualify higher and stay ahead. Hamilton doesn't do well with overtaking a car as fast as his

Should defo be an honourable mention for Jenson, then youve pretty much covered all lewis’s major rivals to date

Prime Seb was something legendary

My prediction for F1 2021- 1. World Constructor Champion- RBR-Honda. 2. World Driver champion- Lewis Hamilton (8th WDC).