26 November 2023 , 11:56
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Martin Brundle remains "shocked" by the fact Lewis Hamilton has gone almost two years without a Formula 1 race win.
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix of December 2021 saw the seven-time world champion extend his victories record to 103. But he hasn't added to it since after a dismal couple of seasons with his Mercedes team off the boil.
The team has given him two cars that have been incapable of challenging runaway champions Red Bull for the title. And so while Max Verstappen has been destroying all his single-season records, Hamilton has been powerless to stop him.
Never before had the Brit gone a full calendar year without recording at least one F1 victory. After he qualified just 11th for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, it became clear that this would be his second winless season in a row.
Sky Sports F1 pundit Brundle still can't quite believe it has been so long since he saw Hamilton on the top step of a podium. "It still feels like a shock that you know Lewis hasn't won a race now for two seasons," he said.
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"He's still got one more chance this weekend, but I do feel that he's been on fine form, particularly in the second half of the season." But it hasn't been enough for the seven-time world champion to ever truly threaten Verstappen.
The closes he came was at the United States Grand Prix when he was catching the Dutchman in the late stages of the race. He ran out of laps but was just a few seconds behind Verstappen at the end, sparking hope for Mercedes that they had finally closed the performance gap.
But Hamilton was later disqualified over too much plank wear on the underside of his car, making it clear that Mercedes have been running the car illegally low to the ground. That will have increased downforce and improved car performance, meaning the result could not be used as a yardstick of truly how close the Silver Arrows were.
And the races that have come since have proven that a significant performance gap still remains. Even in qualifying for this weekend's season finale, Verstappen overcame poor showings in practice to stick his RB19 on pole for the 12th time this season, priming him for a 19th win of a record-breaking year.
As for Hamilton, the 38-year-old is simply happy that another forgettable season is at its end. "I'm definitely happy it's nearly over," he told reporters in Abu Dhabi. "[The car] is more inconsistent than ever before. It's just up and down."