Formula 1 pundit Peter Windsor has dismissed the possibility of Lewis Hamilton beating his rival Max Verstappen if they were to share the same Red Bull car.
Windsor believes that Verstappen’s close relationship with design chief Adrian Newey would give him the upper hand over Hamilton.
Speculation has surrounded Hamilton’s future in recent months as the seven-time world champion has yet to sign a new contract with Mercedes.
In May, there were reports from the Daily Mail suggesting that Ferrari was prepared to offer Hamilton a ground-breaking £40 million contract.
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However, Hamilton has downplayed any talk of a switch to the Italian team.
One team that Hamilton will not be joining, according to Windsor, is Red Bull.
The pundit believes that even in the same car as Verstappen, Hamilton would struggle to overcome the reigning champion due to Verstappen’s strong bond with Newey, Red Bull’s chief technology officer.
“In order for them to be teammates, it would mean Lewis obviously joining Red Bull. And in that situation, I think it would be Max,” Windsor shared on his YouTube channel.
“Because Max has this symbiotic relationship with Adrian [Newey], and for sure with Christian [Horner, Red Bull team principal], but more importantly with Adrian because Adrian is the guy.”
Windsor continued, highlighting the unique partnership between Verstappen and Newey: “And Max knows Adrian’s brain pretty well, and for sure, Adrian knows Max pretty well.
“And there’s only one Adrian, and Lewis would be chiming into that, to some extent, and he’d be getting in his racing car, and it would feel great, much better than the Mercedes, and he might out-qualify Max by a tenth or two.
“But in terms of overall in a season, it would be almost impossible, I think, to beat the Max Verstappen-Adrian Newey partnership, even if you’re Lewis Hamilton or George Russell or Charles Leclerc or anybody because it’s not just Max, and it’s not just Adrian – it’s the two of them together.”
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While Hamilton had seemed destined to remain with Mercedes, there has been no significant progress in contract discussions, leading to rumours of a potential departure as he aims to surpass Michael Schumacher and become the most successful Formula One driver.
Addressing his future, Hamilton recently stated: “We had a good meeting just recently. They are very complex contracts. It’s not just a simple driving contract.”
He added: “We have talked several times. We have a great relationship. It will get done when it’s done. If that’s next week, in a month’s time, as long as it’s done, I’m not really bothered.”