Lewis Hamilton says he completely understands the mental side of Max Verstappen's attempts to win his first World Championship, and that the Dutch driver's eagerness is to be expected. Hamilton was speaking in the wake of another collision between himself and Verstappen at Monza, and had some advice for his young rival as neither driver backs off when racing the other. "I never expect a driver to back down. That's not how I approach racing with any drivers," Hamilton told media, including RacingNews365.com . "Ultimately, we all have to be smart and know that there's a time where you're not going to make a corner. "It's all about making sure you live to fight the next corner. That's really just through experience, you find that balance, and that it's not all on one corner – there'll be other opportunities. "I know what it's like having your first fight for your first championship, and your eagerness, and you go through lots of different experiences and emotions during that time. "I do believe that we will continue to get stronger and I'm hopeful we won't have any more incidents through the year." He added: "There's a lot of pressure from working in a big team. There's a lot of self-expectation and pressure, because the desire to win is huge. So I empathise and understand that, but I know that we will continue to grow from this." Asked about how he views the psychological aspect of their rivalry, Hamilton downplayed it, saying he doesn't really feel that factors into the equation. "I don't think of it that way," the seven-time World Champion went on to comment. "I've been racing a long time [and] I don't necessarily feel that there's a psychological battle when you're wheel-to-wheel. "You're naturally hoping to get by, or one of us [is] hoping to get by in, and safely. The most important thing is that you just do it safely."
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