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Seven-time champion Hamilton has cautioned McLaren’s drivers in the title fight, Oscar Piastri and Norris, about Max Verstappen’s “ruthless” nature as the trio approach the concluding rounds of the F1 calendar.

The Australian driver now holds the lead in the title race by a 14-point margin from his teammate Norris, while the Red Bull star is positioned 40 points adrift off the lead following three wins and a second place in the past four races.

The Mercedes veteran, who fought a fierce and dramatic duel for the crown with Verstappen in 2021, stated: “Under those circumstances it’s tough, the pressure is high. It is a time when you have to put your blinkers up and block everything from external sources.

“You have to be cut-throat and this describes Max is, he will claim this from them if they fail to adopt the same approach.

“One must push hard to fend off a driver like Verstappen and his competitive machine. Additionally for Piastri or Norris to come out ahead, steady performance is crucial, and you've seen that from Max lately.”

The seven-time champion noted that Max had the easiest job as the driver in pursuit. He found himself 104 points adrift behind Piastri post the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August.

“You have three incredibly talented competitors and I can't predict how they're going to behave,” added Hamilton.

“Max has won it four times over so he is aware of what it's like and playing the chaser is far simpler than defending a position.

“As the frontrunner and a rival is closing in, that creates pressure rather than as the pursuer and expectations are low. As the championship leader you have everything to lose.”

George Russell, victorious in the Singapore Grand Prix two races ago, remarked: “Piastri and Norris have the fastest car so they control their destiny. However, Verstappen and Red Bull are delivering excellent work so they cannot be ruled out.

“They displayed glimpses of impressive performance initially but they lacked consistency, but currently consistently they are dominating.”

Fair Competition at McLaren

Piastri and Norris go into the last rounds free to race against one another and without team restrictions hanging over them – other than not to crash with one another.

Norris had been facing potential penalties post-incident with his teammate when securing P3 from his teammate during the initial turns in Singapore.

After the incident between the two at the start of the sprint at the US Grand Prix recently, restrictions are now gone.

“I acknowledge my role on my part in the sprint and we are starting this round within a clean slate for both of us, simply heading out and going racing,” commented the Australian.

Piastri, the winner of Zandvoort, has witnessed his lead erode following defeats to Norris in the last four events, but he admitted he was also taken aback Max had come into the equation in such a short time.

“The performance Max has displayed since Monza was somewhat unexpected,” said Piastri.

“We saw glimpses earlier in the season but additionally inconsistencies. We know they have been throwing various improvements to their machine aiming to enhance performance but he has come to the fight sooner than anticipated.”

However, when questioned if he had concerns regarding Max, Piastri responded: “It isn’t truly what I concentrate on. He has been reliable and fast lately but there’s no point in being concerned with or dwelling on it.

“The key to securing the title is get the most personally, the McLaren, the squad. Max is present, he’s a contender but ultimately it has no effect on the way I handle competition.”

Lando continued: “Max displayed very good form over the past weeks. Red Bull has been delivering a higher level than McLaren.

“Max has taken victory multiple Grands Prix and he’s a top driver. One would be foolish to not want to give Max a chance.

“At the minute, Red Bull is performing stronger, a lot of races they have been quicker. However, opportunities remain. We have a better car in the final rounds and we need to utilize this advantage.”

Verstappen stated: “Certainly we’ve been on a strong streak, definitely been enjoying the recent success as such and we intend to continue this streak forward. We are aware we must perform flawlessly through the final races to be in contention, but we focus on to maximise everything and find our position.”

Team Tactics ‘Amusing’

The Red Bull team were penalized a fine following the American GP, because a Red Bull staff member was present on the starting grid when the grid should have been empty as he attempted to take off the markings McLaren placed on the pit wall to help Norris park his car in the right place.

Norris remarked he found the situation “highly entertaining, notably as I never used the markings, making it even funnier”.

He added: “I had it for back up. I didn't need to use it during the US GP. We were aware that they were doing it. {They tried to take tape off