“There is a change in mentality,” Karun Chandhok distinguishes between Max Verstappen’s nature of rivalry with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton

Max Verstappen is as aggressive as F1 gets, and we caught a glimpse of it in his famous battle with Lewis Hamilton for the entire length of his championship season. Lewis Hamilton agreed in one of the interviews that he sees Max differently than any other driver because of the fierce approach on the track. The two have had their fair share of incidents such as at Monza and Silverstone to name a few.

With Lewis Hamilton nowhere near where he’s been for the past few years, it’s been a tussle between Max and Ferrari Charles Leclerc. The two have traded blows since the start of the season, but the nature of the rivalry is different. Considering they’ve both known each other for a long time and were previously on lockdown, there’s a sense of respect between the duo.

It was very different with Lewis Hamilton for two reasons. First, Max was chasing his first world title, which made him more eager and aggressive. Secondly, it felt like the Dutchman wanted to dethrone Hamilton more than anything else, but with Charles he sees him as an equal, someone who’s worked his way up the ladder and is trying to make his mark in Formula One

Also read: “We’re not the fastest”: Max Verstappen remains skeptical about Ferrari

According to Karun Chandhok, Max Verstappen sees Charles Leclerc as a rival rather than a competitor, as was the case with Lewis Hamilton

Karun Chandhok has pointed out the differences between their rivalries. In a recent interview, the Indian said: “I still think he drives Leclerc differently than he did last year with Lewis because I think he was trying to establish himself against Lewis wasn’t he?”

“He sees Leclerc as equal to someone he’s been racing with since they were kids and so there’s less elbowing in the way they race together and it’s cleaner.“

“They’re giving each other more space and maybe part of that is maturity and this World Cup, but I think there’s definitely a shift in mindset,” planetf1 reports.

Max Verstappen seems to have matured in his mindset this year. That could very well be because he won his first championship. But it’s gratifying to see him growing differently into the sport.

Also read: Lando Norris feels that Montreal was a reflection of where McLaren is currently

Also read: “Max doesn’t know what I’m talking about,” Lewis Hamilton answered bluntly to Max Verstappen’s spongy comments