Lewis Hamilton appeared to take a public swipe at Fernando Alonso after his old McLaren team-mate's claim that the Brit's Formula 1 titles have "less value" than those of Max Verstappen.
The Spaniard caused a stir with his comments, which were made in an interview with Dutch outlet De Telegraaf . Alonso recognised that Hamilton and Michael Schumacher have more titles than Verstappen, but argued that the Dutchman had been forced to work harder for his first.
"This year Max is very dominant and he could cruise to the world title," said the Alpine racer. "Last season it was different. I thought he performed better than Lewis in the end and therefore I think he is a worthy champion.
"I also have a lot of respect for Lewis. However, it is different when you win seven world titles when you have only had to fight with your team-mate. Then, I think a championship has less value than when you have fewer titles, but against other drivers you have had to contend with equivalent or even better equipment.
"In 2005 and 2006, I had a good start to the year myself and was able to create a lead. Then others might have had a better car, but I was able to manage that gap. I never had to fight with my teammate to win those titles. Nor did I see Max fighting with [Sergio] Perez or [Alex] Albon to win races.
"But Schumacher in particular fought with his teammate to become champion five times in a row and Hamilton fought with [Nico] Rosberg and [Valtteri] Bottas. That's different, I think."
Once those quotes had been shared by multiple media outlets, it seemed Alonso may have regretted what he said. He later issued a short statement on social media, in which he made it clear he had not intended to diminish the achievements of Hamilton and Schumacher.
"And again... Please, all the titles are amazing, well deserved and inspiring," the 41-year-old wrote. "Incomparable to each other and let's enjoy champions and legends of our current time. Tired of the continuous search for headlines. Let's enjoy them."
It appears Hamilton may not have seen that correction, but there is little doubt he has been made aware of Alonso's original comments.
The Brit published a cryptic post on social media, in which he wrote nothing except for a thumbs-up emoji, which accompanied a photo of himself and Alonso from their McLaren days with the Brit on the top step of a podium, perhaps suggesting the Spaniard may still be bitter from their title battle in 2007.
