Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton staged an exhilarating duel during the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix, with the Dutchman’s assault on the Briton at Turn 1 on lap 16 standing out as one of the defining moments of Sunday’s action on the 26th.
In the early period of the pit stops, the Ferrari driver headed into the boxes and rejoined the track in third, ahead of the Red Bull rival. Yet the four-time champion drove the RB22 inside the Ferrari of the seven-time champion and pulled off a dive bomb to reclaim third place.
“I knew that was also my only opportunity, because they weren’t slow in terms of pace,” the competitor explained.
“So, when I saw the chance arise, I seized it, and, well, it was a good manoeuvre,” he added.
Two years earlier, in that same corner, Verstappen had attempted a similar move on Hamilton during the fight for third place on lap 63. At the time, the front tires locked, he touched Hamilton’s Mercedes, and sent the Red Bull into the air.
In the end, the stewards judged the scene as a racing incident.
