'Battle with Verstappen is Hamilton's toughest ever'

For the first time in years, Hamilton looks to have an opponent for the title that is not his Mercedes teammate. The last time the Brit had a real battle was in 2016, when he finished second behind Nico Rosberg. In 2021, that will all be different. Red Bull Racing has closed the gap and is battling Verstappen for the title.

Toughest title fight yet for Hamilton

But according to Mol, the battle with Verstappen is still a lot tougher than Hamilton had with Rosberg in 2016: "Hamilton has a fight on his hands that I don't think he has ever had before," says the Dutchman in conversation with Formule1.nl. "With Rosberg it was more mind games within the team. This is rough fighting with an opponent."

Mol sees Hamilton making more mistakes through the fight and he thinks Hamilton had some catching up to do, having had very few wheel-to-wheel battles in recent years. Mol does see the respect that Hamilton and Verstappen have for each other.