2021 F1 world championship: Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton

At the end of the Austrian Grand Prix, Verstappen leads the F1 world championship battle by 32 points.

The 2021 F1 season is well and truly underway. Having completed 9 races in the season so far, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen seems to have the upper hand at the moment.

The Dutch driver dominated the triple-header in France, Styria & Austria, with back-to-back wins. The Austrian Grand Prix also saw Verstappen dominating the entire weekend, taking pole position, race win, and the extra point for fastest lap.

At the end of the Austrian Grand Prix, Verstappen leads the F1 world championship battle by 32 points from the reigning 7-time champion Lewis Hamilton. Red Bull also leads the constructor's championship with 286 points - 44 points ahead of their main rival Mercedes.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team have dominated the sport since the start of the hybrid era winning 7 consecutive world titles, both driver and constructors. However, the 2021 season has witnessed them have their worst start yet.

Red Bull has been showing great pace since the start of the season while their rival Mercedes seems to be struggling to keep up. The question thus arises, is this the end of the Mercedes era?

Having said that, Mercedes remains confident of bouncing back. The F1 team even signed on Lewis Hamilton for two more years recently, confirming their confidence of getting back to winning ways.

Following the triple-header, F1 will now head to Great Britain and Hungary, before the start of the summer break. The British Grand Prix is scheduled between July 16 - 18, while the Hungarian GP will take place between July 30 - August 1.