Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen are 'equally talented,' says former F1 driver

Former F1 driver Christian Klien believes Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are equally skilled behind the wheel. The Dutchman managed to successfully trump the Monegasque driver in the 2022 F1 championship, despite a poor start to the season.

A short while back in Bahrain, it seemed like Ferrari would finally make their way to the top of the sport again. Despite a great points deficit to his championship rival Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen managed to not only bridge the gap to his rival but also secure the championship with four races to go.

His dominance in 2022 has been lauded by many in the F1 fraternity, with most agreeing that the Dutchman is substantially better compared to Leclerc. Former driver Christian Klien, however, disagrees.

Klien believes the two drivers are at par, skill-wise, and that the difference between their championship results was due to Ferrari's high tire degradation. When asked if there is a big difference between the two title contenders, Klien said on the F1 Nation podcast:

“I don’t think so, I think Charles is equally talented. I mean some of his pole position laps that he put together this year was just unbelievable. I also think he has the race craft. If you have a bigger tyre degradation during the race there’s not much that you can do as a driver."

Ferrari helped Max Verstappen secure 2022 title, claims former world champion

Former F1 world champion Damon Hill believes Ferrari helped Max Verstappen secure his second consecutive title in the sport, calling the Italian team's performance 'lamentable'. The Briton believes the Scuderia shot themselves in the foot throughout the season, handing out Verstappen and Red Bull easy wins.

Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Hill said:

"I think it's very difficult to actually decide whether or not it's Red Bull and Max's brilliance this season and almost perfect performance, or whether it was Ferrari shooting themselves in the foot. It was a lamentable at times performance from them because they showed so much promise at the beginning. Between team strategy and a few driver errors, they're basically lacking the ability to move forward with the car."

Max Verstappen has now secured the 2022 title with four races to go, and his team is expected to pick up the constructors trophy shortly as well. The Dutchman now stands a chance at breaking Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel's record for the most wins in a single season (13).

However, with the battle for second place in the championship still going strong, the now two-time world champion will have to fight hard to find his place in the history books.