Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton gave Formula 1 fans one of the most intense rivalries ever seen in the sport back in 2021.
The two drivers could barely be separated all season as they battled for the championship; Verstappen with the prospect of winning his maiden title and Hamilton with the chance of breaking the all-time record and grabbing his eighth title.
Coming together multiple times across the season, the Red Bull and Mercedes driver went into the final round at Abu Dhabi level on points, with Verstappen eventually coming out victorious in controversial fashion.
The extremity of the rivalry and the intensity of the fight for the F1 crown will be difficult to repeat, but according to Peter Windsor, the World Rally Championship has a similar situation in 2024.
Peter Windsor compares Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton title fight to Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak in WRC
This year’s WRC season has mainly been controlled by Thierry Neuville, who is looking to secure his first championship after years of coming up short.
The Hyundai driver has secured two wins this year thus far and has finished in the top five in all but two rallies. Heading into the Central European Rally, the Belgian has a lead of 29 points with two rounds to go.
Sebastien Ogier had been his closest rival, but after a string of misfortunes for the Toyota driver, Neuville’s Hyundai teammate Ott Tanak has emerged as his new challenger. The Estonian, who won the 2019 championship, is looking to take the fight to his teammate and try and win his second title.
Neuville is looking to get the job done as soon as he can at the next rally, but with the pressure from his teammate, Windsor discussed on his YouTube channel how ‘difficult’ the situation is for Hyundai and likened it to Verstappen and Hamilton’s battle.
“When things look so in place, don’t they, motorsport has a great habit of everything falling apart!” he said.
“His [Neuville’s] nearest rival is his teammate Ott Tanak and Ott is very, very quick. And it’s a difficult situation for Hyundai because they have to be very visible, and I asked him about that in the interview.
“Imagine if it’s Max and Perez. There’s no real similarity, the better similarity would be Max and Lewis in the same team and they’re both in the running for the championship, driving for the same team. That would be where we’re at right now. So, it’s difficult.”
Can Thierry Neuville hold his teammate back to win his maiden title?
The current battle for the WRC title is probably not as intense as the one seen in F1 in 2021, but it is equally as difficult, if not more given that Neuville and Tanak are teammates.
Many would thin that Hyundai would prioritise Neuville as he has led the championship for much of the year and stands the best chance of doing so. But it seems that the Korean manufacturer will let Tanak fight and try and challenge his teammate.
READ MORE: Ott Tanak told he must avoid ‘unfriendly’ title gesture at the end of the WRC season
Neuville wants to avoid such an ‘internal fight’ with Tanak and wrap up the title at the Central European Rally so he can concentrate on keeping Toyota behind in the Manufacturers’ Championship.
Hyundai lead their rivals by 17 points after their advantage was cut down following Toyota’s one-two finish at Rally Chile.