Hamilton Ready For Title, Ferrari Hopeful While Hulkenberg Looks For Drive

The season is back, and there are 9 races to do in the coming 14 weeks all over the world. There are different expectations from teams and drivers as anxieties increase.

Hamilton does not seem to be feeling any of the heat considering he is well ahead of his second, Valtteri Bottas by 62 points.

Bottas does have a chance to win, logically speaking, but his performance and potential attitude this season have led many to look further down the table for possible challengers. They include Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel, and Charles Leclerc.

Hamilton extended his lead over Bottas by 31 points, which is half the gap in just three of the previous races. Bottas crashed out in Germany when he had a chance to make the points coincidentally also when Hamilton collided with Leclerc during the first lap in the Hungary Grand Prix.

Now Bottas is facing pressure from Verstappen and Vettel who are closing in as the season wears on. Thus far, eyes are mostly on Verstappen considering the Red Bull racer has been vocal on upsetting Hamilton from his apparent dynasty.

Other favorite underdogs, Ferrari will start Spa and Monza with fans eagerly watching their performances. It should be an excellent chance for Vettel and Leclerc to get a notch from a long awaited win finally.

Considering Leclerc is a bit inexperienced, it will be the most significant of his career. If the Ferrari tent can capitalize on the opportunity, the question is which driver it would be considering they are back to back.

The truth is Vettel is ahead in the season though Leclerc has also proven impressive. For example, he had a chance to win in Bahrain, but his engine had other ideas during the last laps. The same is true of Baku.

Unfortunately, the Hungarian is quite young and very inexperienced, so there are several weaknesses in his overall strategy. He had made a lot of mistakes, and he has a more aggressive driving style than Vettel. However, he has not begun getting used to the tempo and his car.

Vettel, on the other hand, has a point to prove for team seniority and will be motivated with an ambitious Leclerc on his heels.

Further down the grid, previous announcements by Mercedes Principal Toto Wolff created a shift in drivers letting Esteban Ocon pair with Daniel Ricciardo. This has unseated the German Nico Hulkenberg from the Renault pairing, and he may soon be looking for a drive.