Lewis Hamilton baffled by Max Verstappen’s straight line advantage

Lewis Hamilton has been left baffled by Red Bull’s straight-line speed after Max Verstappen used it to his advantage to win the Australian Grand Prix. Mercedes were markedly improved in Melbourne as the Brit came home in second but it was still not enough to challenge the season’s dominant front-runner. 

Verstappen was the big favourite for the Australian Grand Prix after comfortably qualifying on pole. However the race did not go as he would have planned with both Hamilton and Mercedes team mate George Russell getting past him on the opening lap. 

While Russell fell down the running order after pitting minutes before the first red flag but Hamilton managed to keep Verstappen behind him until the 12th lap when the Red Bull man easily passed him on the back straight. 

After the race, Hamilton suggested that Red Bull’s straight-line speed had given them a major advantage this season, admitting that he had been left baffled by how quick the RB19 is. 

“I don’t think we would have, Max is in another league,” Hamilton told Sky Sports when asked if he could have challenged the Dutchman. “His car is so fast and he passed me halfway down the straight and he was several metres ahead.

“I don’t know how it is so quick on the straight, it is just insane. We’re not and they’re just in another league. Until we pick up speed on the straight like they have and have the crazy downforce that they have in the corners and that’s how it’s gonna continue.” 

Hamilton spent most of the rest of the race battling with old foe Fernando Alonso as they fought for second place. The Brit eventually emerged ahead after the final stages of the race descended into chaos. 

The 38-year-old admitted that his current fight is really with his former McLaren team mate but believes he can get the upper hand over the course of the coming months. 

“We got a lot of work to do, clearly, to catch the Red Bull, because they came flying past and disappeared,” he explained. “But I think this, hopefully, gives us a real boost of hope and energy that is so early in the season but we’re there or thereabouts.

“If we continue to work together we can definitely fight the Ferraris and the Aston Martins. The battle is really with Fernando right now.

“I enjoyed racing with [Alonso], very reminiscing of my first race here.”

It is four weeks until the next Formula 1 race when the circus will roll into Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Hamilton will hope he can get closer to Verstappen as he looks to build on his positive performance.