[Official] Brazilian Grand Prix 2022: Grand Prix Weekend Thread - Round 21 of 22

[BTCC frog]

Originally Posted by Aysedasi

No, I don't think so necessarily, if the overtaker is of the 'let me through or we crash' mentality...

I think this is true. On many occasions last year, Verstappen put Hamilton in 'back off or we crash' situations and every time Hamilton backed off. Hamilton turned the tables in Monza, putting Verstappen in that situation, and Verstappen chose to crash.

Verstappen put Hamilton in one of those situations again in Brazil, but Hamilton has had enough and realised that he needs to choose to crash in those situations otherwise Verstappen will just keep doing it to him. Verstappen has the psychological upper hand in their battles, and Hamilton is trying to eliminate that. It is a bit like Prost turning in on Senna in Suzuka 1989. I actually think Senna's move was probably okay on that occasion, but Prost did it because Senna had pulled more aggressive moves in the past.

As for Leclerc, I think he is more like Nigel Mansell, and pulls off these risky overtakes just thinking that he can do it, rather than because he is trying to pressure the other driver into backing off. It makes Leclerc by far the most entertaining driver to watch on the grid right now, but is also why he isn't yet as complete a driver as Hamilton or Verstappen.