As just about everyone reaches for their trusty crystal ball, Jeroen Bleekemolen is the latest to make his F1 2025 predictions with the Dutchman foreseeing a “Hamilton-Verstappen fight is coming again”.
But while he believes today there is a lot of mutual respect between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, 2021 “forgiven and forgotten”, that could reignite in a “hard” title fight.
Is all ‘forgiven and forgotten’ between Hamilton and Verstappen?
Hamilton’s move to Ferrari ahead of the new Formula 1 campaign has pundits predicting this season could be the perfect opportunity for the seven-time World Champion to make it eight.
Not only is the change of scenery set to “be a good trigger” in motivating him, as his former Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas put it, but Ferrari made notable inroads into Red Bull’s on-track advantage last year.
The Scuderia won five Grands Prix on their way to second place in the Constructors’ Championship where they were 63 points up on the Milton Keynes squad having also challenged McLaren for the title.
“Somehow I hope that the Hamilton-Verstappen fight is coming again,” he told RacingNews365.
“Of course, we had that season when they fought against each other and that ended a bit difficult, with a lot of incidents in the season itself. But that is long behind those two.
“They have a lot of respect for each other, you can see that. That is all forgiven and forgotten.
“It will really be hard again when things go between them again.
“But they are two heroes, so it would be nice. Hamilton is really not going to drive at the top for another five, six years, so it’s his last chance at glory. So I actually hope he still has a chance.”
But when all is said and done, the Dutchman reckons Verstappen has to be the favourite to pip the pack to a fifth World title after last season’s heroics.
Despite not having the fastest car on the grid for much of the season, the reigning World Champion won nine races and clinched the title with two races to spare.
Verstappen though, will be up against stiff opposition in Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and the McLaren team-mates with George Russell also potentially in the mix.
“I think there is a good chance that Verstappen cannot become World Champion,” Bleekemolen started. “It will really depend on how strong the RB21 is.
“If Verstappen does make a mistake… He has always done so well that you can almost say: he just walks through it. He always takes his points, takes the victories, if you think it’s almost impossible, he does it anyway.
“So in principle, you should see him as a favorite again.”
Hamilton has in the past spoken about that Abu Dhabi 2021, a race that was decided in controversial circumstances when then-FIA race director Michael Masi set up a one-lap shoot-out for the title through a late restart. Verstappen, who was on much fresher tyres, overtook Hamilton to deny the Mercedes driver an eighth World title.
“Ultimately that feeling never really truly leaves you,” Hamilton told ESPN in 2023. “It’s like when you think about your first love, it will always be that first love and first heartbreak.
“Abu Dhabi, the scar is there and there will always be that memory. Even though I reprogrammed my mind, I think it still took me the whole year to really push through it because we were straight back into work. It wasn’t a quick thing.”
A year later he told GQ Magazine that while he was “obviously” robbed, he has made “peace” with what happened.
“Was I robbed? Obviously. I mean, you know the story,” Hamilton said when asked if he felt he was ‘robbed’ of an eighth title.
“But I think what was really beautiful in that moment, which I take away from it, was my dad was with me. And we’d gone through this huge roller coaster of life together, ups and downs.
“And the day that it hurt the most, he was there, and the way he raised me was to always stand up, keep your head high.”
“If I see a clip of it, I still feel it,” he added, “but I’m at peace with it.”
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