Is Hamilton the underdog? "It's not one of Max's fingers that worries Lewis now"

Verstappen smiled last in Austin

Formula One journalist David Tremayne thinks the race weekend in Austin could well prove a crucial turning point in the championship. "It doubled Verstappen's points lead," he writes on Formula1.com. "And it was also a perfect demonstration of the way he can remain ice cool even under the strongest pressure, and still consider all the ramifications."

"Proof yet again that a once sometimes hot-headed racer has matured into a serious World Championship contender. Though an incident in practice on Friday afternoon revealed that the tiger within still snarls when prodded," the journalist continued.

Hamilton as the underdog in the coming races

"He got the last laugh on Sunday afternoon, however. And though that digital incident raised the question of whether such occasional outbursts might yet jeopardise his campaign when things get tight in the five races that remain, I suspect that it’s not one of Max’s fingers that concerns Lewis right now," said Tremayne looking back at Verstappen's middle finger to Hamilton.

"Having been beaten by Max on a Mercedes track, and with Red Bull tracks coming up in Mexico and Brazil, the strongest message he got from Texas was that however difficult his underdog task has already been all year, losing by that scant 1.3s last weekend just made it all an awful lot harder," Tremayne concludes.