Verstappen hits back at Hamilton: I have nothing to prove in F1

Verstappen trails Hamilton by 14 points going into this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.

The Dutchman has one win to his name in 2021, whereas Hamilton has three - winning the last two in succession.

During the drivers’ press conference in Monte Carlo, Hamilton said: “Perhaps, as you know, he feels that he has a lot to prove but I am not necessarily in the same boat there.”

Verstappen was asked what he made of Hamilton’s comments and insisted that he has “nothing to prove” in this year’s title battle.

“I have nothing to prove,” Verstappen said. “And avoiding contact, I think it goes both ways, so we have done well, that’s true. But we raced hard, we avoided the contact, both sides, let’s hope we can keep doing that and keep being on track and race hard against each other.”

While Red Bull has fared well in the principality in recent years, Verstappen has yet to finish on the podium.

Explaining his lack of form in Monaco over the years, Verstappen added: “I think it’s been a bit up and down, 2016 and 2018 we did have a good car here, and the other years since I was with the team was not that easy let’s say, and it just depends on the competitiveness of the car, from the start.

“A few years we were a bit off and some other years we had a bit better start to the year. This year we had a competitive start so I hope it is the same here but every year is different so I don’t know at the moment.”