Jacques Villeneuve: Hamilton’s errors are not reflected in the point standings

Lewis Hamilton, according to Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 Formula One World Champion, has managed to get away with some of his mistakes this season.

Jacques Villeneuve believes that the current points standings do not fairly reflect Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton’s championship campaigns thus far, with Hamilton escaping lightly from errors he’s made this season.

The most obvious escape Villeneuve might be alluding to occurred at the San Marino Grand Prix, when Hamilton slid off the road and into the barriers, damaging his car and losing a lap. However, a red flag pit stop allowed him to re-enter the race with a repaired car, and he fought his way back to second.

With six races remaining, only six points separate Verstappen and Hamilton.

“The points do not reflect the actual standings,” Villeneuve said.

“Hamilton has made many mistakes, but he paid a low price compared to Verstappen.

“Just think of Verstappen’s retirements in Hungary and Britain. Then these were easy races for Mercedes, where Lewis was a bit off.

“At other circuits, they had less pace or they made mistakes, like in Turkey. Yet they are still close in the standings and therefore it is very difficult to say who will win this championship.

“So far, Red Bull and Max Verstappen have been perfect, while you could see some fatigue in Mercedes and Hamilton.”

Mercedes aren’t as strong as they have been in the past, according to Villeneuve, but their car’s potential is rising as the season has progressed.

“In the past, Mercedes didn’t really need to push, they won anyway,” he said.

“Like Ferrari with [Michael] Schumacher. Everyone said they were geniuses, even when they made tactical mistakes, they were so strong that they won in the end anyway.

“You can see with Mercedes that the team and the driver no longer seem to be as united as before, if you go by their statements.

“But you absolutely cannot write Mercedes off as dead. In Turkey, they drove with the biggest wing and still nobody could keep up with them on the straight. Maybe they have pushed the potential of the engine up, as there are only a few races left.

“If they can keep doing that, Hamilton will go well at Austin and in Brazil – it will be a big help.”

The uniforms of Formula One racing drivers are currently available at the following websites for a reasonable price: