Verstappen edges further ahead of Hamilton: "Silverstone will be a big one"

Max Verstappen is slowly closing in on Lewis Hamilton in the championship. Toto Wolff said that with one drop out of Max Mercedes could be back in the race, but according to Damon Hill that will be a difficult story.

Hamilton entered 2021 with hopes of winning his eighth world title. At the start of the season he seemed to be in with a chance of doing so, with victories in Bahrain, Portugal and Spain. Those races feel long overdue, however, after five wins in a row for Red Bull Racing, four of which were for Verstappen.

Pressure on Mercedes

''Red Bull were pretty dominant in Austria, they had an entire pit-stop advantage, so they absolutely smashed it. It is looking like Max is inching away into the distance, just as he did do in Austria,'' Hill said in a video from Sky Sports. However, the former world champion still sees possibilities.

''Pirelli are also bringing a stronger rear tyre for Silverstone and it may produce disparities between the Red Bull and Mercedes depending on those tyres," says the Brit. However, after five wins for Red Bull Racing, the pressure is on for Mercedes: ''Silverstone will be a big one'', Hill concludes.