Verstappen sees Hamilton coming back stronger: 'Lewis is a great sportsman'

Max Verstappen has some sympathy for his rival Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen also saw his rival drive a near flawless weekend, but due to bad luck eventually missed out on the world title.

For Verstappen it was a big party after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. After it looked like he had no chance in the battle against Hamilton, Verstappen got lucky for once. In the final laps, a safety car arrived and he had one more chance to overtake Lewis on a softer tyre.

Where it was a big party for Verstappen, Verstappen said the following about Hamilton in a press event to GPblog and others. ''Of course, there was one side very happy and the other side very disappointed. Of course, I felt for Lewis, because he did everything right during the race. But F1 can be unpredictable and can go either way. That unfortunate is part of racing," said the Dutchman.

Although Hamilton will be dejected right now, Verstappen thinks his rival will only come out of this stronger. ''Lewis is a great sportsman. It's racing and we have to learn to live with this (setbacks), whether it's negative or positive. He will come back very strong as he is a great driver'', concludes the Red Bull driver.