Who’s Given Lewis Hamilton More Trouble – Nico Rosberg or Max Verstappen?

The title pressure is back! Lewis Hamilton had been on a joyous stint since his rival, Nico Rosberg ran away with the championship trophy in 2016.

Valtteri Bottas just wasn’t quick enough to challenge the Briton, and neither were the then title challengers, Ferrari or Red Bull.

The entire world watched as Hamilton kept piling up win race after race wins hardly ever having to show a bit of resistance from his own teammate or others. It was almost like watching a herd of deers challenge a lion in its prime age.

Race winner Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP congratulates second-place finisher and World Drivers Champion Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP on the podium during the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Crucially though, just when it looked like Hamilton could effortlessly secure his record-breaking 8th championship title, an obstruction arrived, and certainly not an easy one – Max Verstappen.

This season has offered too many resemblances to the 2016 title fight, with Verstappen heading into the final part of the season with a narrow lead in hand. And also, Verstappen and Hamilton have been involved in one too many incidents much like Rosberg and Hamilton.

Rosberg or Verstappen: The toughest rival of Lewis Hamilton

As we all know, rivaling with Hamilton is not an easy task, and drivers like Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa, and Sebastian Vettel learned it the hard way. But, like Rosberg, Verstappen looks well settled in his duel with the 7-time world champion.

Formula One F1 – Brazilian Grand Prix – Jose Carlos Pace Circuit, Sao Paulo, Brazil – November 12, 2021 Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton celebrates after finishing first in qualifying Pool via REUTERS/Lars Baron

So, too many similarities between Verstappen and Rosberg in their title contentions against Hamilton. But, let’s look at the differences; who is the best? It is a tough question to answer, considering Verstappen’s season is not over yet and the end result could go either way from here.

But, let’s assume Verstappen lifts the title and re-route to this question.

Rosberg over Verstappen?

We’d say Nico Rosberg. The Verstappen fans might not prefer this but, we feel Rosberg had the odds stacked against him. One, he had to tackle a lot of hindrances within his own team to defeat Hamilton. And that certainly isn’t the case with Red Bull at the moment.

Being a rival from a different team, Verstappen has had the freedom to challenge Hamilton without worrying about the outcome. If things did go awry, the team always had his back.

Two, team orders haven’t been an aspect to worry about for the Dutchman. If anything, his teammate, Sergio Perez has only helped him on several occasions; French GP for instance.

Motorsports: FIA Formula One World Championship 2015, Grand Prix of Spain, #6 Nico Rosberg (GER, Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team), Toto Wolff (AUT, Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team), (Photo by Hoch Zwei/Corbis via Getty Images)

The final point is Verstappen not having to challenge Hamilton in equal machinery; Rosberg had no upper hand whatsoever against the Briton in terms of performance.

Contrastingly, the 2021 season has witnessed Verstappen enjoy the sheer power of Honda and the chassis of Red Bull; This pace advantage has helped Verstappen clinch a whopping 9 race wins so far despite enduring 3 DNFs.

Overall, this doesn’t take anything away from Verstappen’s own talent. The young Dutchman has been at the top throughout this season. But, things are set to get a bit tougher from here amid the resurgence of Hamilton and Mercedes. So, can Verstappen somehow hold off Hamilton until the end as Rosberg did? Only time will tell.

Watch Story: Ugliest Moments in Hamilton-Rosberg Rivalry

The post Who’s Given Lewis Hamilton More Trouble – Nico Rosberg or Max Verstappen? appeared first on EssentiallySports.