MAX VERSTAPPEN has predicted Mercedes will ban Lewis Hamilton from “certain meetings” in the upcoming season.
Hamilton has announced he will be leaving the Silver Arrows to join Ferrari in 2025.
While the announcement came as a shock to the Formula One world both Hamilton and Toto Wolff insist it is business as usual this year.
The pair are focused on helping the team close the gap to Red Bull with both Hamilton and George Russell leading the fight.
But according to Verstappen things may be a little bit “awkward” at the German garage now that everyone knows Hamilton is off he will be left out at certain things.
He said: “For the rest of the year, I would say it’s a little bit awkward.
READ MORE ON F1
“It’s not like they are suddenly enemies. He has achieved so many great things with them.
“They are still behind him, and for sure he has a great relationship with everyone, especially Toto.
“But he knows at one point, and Toto for sure will tell him: ‘Look, I know we’ve had all this success, but you can’t be part of certain meetings any more’.
“That is normal in F1. It’s probably a bit weird.
Most read in Motorsport
HOW TO GET FREE BETS ON FOOTBALL
“But you are professional enough to deal with that. And once he’s sitting in the car, they will of course go flat out for him.”
Usually, a driver does not announce a deal 12 months before their actual switch as teams want to keep talks out of the public eye.
The time when more details are revealed about moves is during the F1 “silly season” in the summer break.
But Verstappen believed the only reason the British driver announced the deal so early was to stop the news from being “leaked”.
He continued: “It must have been leaked to announce something that big that early in the season.
“Him going to Ferrari is not really shocking. It’s not a surprise they were talking.
“I just think the announcement was a bit rushed.”
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
