Hamilton criticised for his Verstappen accusation after Hungarian GP failure

25 July 2023 , 15:11

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Lewis Hamilton accused Max Verstappen of pushing him wide in the Hungarian Grand Prix (Image: HOCH ZWEI/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

Lewis Hamilton has been asked what he expected Max Verstappen to do differently after accusing his rival of pushing him wide at the first corner in the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Hamilton secured pole position in qualifying, but almost immediately lost ground after a disappointing start. Meanwhile Verstappen made an excellent start as he successfully overtook Hamilton.

McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris also quickly overtook Hamilton and the Brit never recovered, ultimately finishing fourth as Verstappen secured a seventh straight race win. Reflecting on his poor start after the race, Hamilton said: "The start, actually, the initial getaway wasn't the worst I've ever had, but it obviously wasn't as good as Max's.

"I had a bit of wheelspin and then obviously Max was on the inside and he ran me wide and I got done by the two McLarens. So, definitely not a great start, kind of reminiscent of 2015 when I fell back from first.

"After that, just didn't have the pace to keep up with the guys. The balance in the car was pretty awful on that first stint, a lot of understeer and oversteer through corner balance and I just couldn't keep up with them.

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"So then, bit by bit, as we got through the next couple of stints, the car started to become more drivable, and then the last stint obviously was much better. If we had had the pace we had at the end, we would have been a little bit better I think through the day."

However, F1 veteran Coulthard has asked Hamilton what else he expected Verstappen to do with the pair battling for the lead. "You've got to feel for him," Coulthard said on Channel 4 while rewatching the start of the race.

Verstappen went on to win the race (Federico Basile/IPA/REX/Shutterstock)

"I think as he got off the line, the initial reaction from both drivers was pretty much the same, but then in that secondary phase, that's where Max Verstappen was able to get it up the inside.

"Inevitably, once Lewis decided to try and run it out, then he was going to get pushed wide. What else would he expect Max Verstappen to do?"

Former W Series driver Alice Powell added: "I just think Max's reactions were just better than Lewis'. Actually Max got quite a bit of wheelspin as well. Max did say they worked a lot on the start, because obviously the starts are pretty critical, so they've obviously done some good work, but I just think a lot of it came down to the reactions."

Matthew Cooper