'Mature' Verstappen the clear favourite for title - Chandhok

Former F1 driver Karun Chandhok believes Max Verstappen's newfound maturity will make the Dutchman "very hard to beat".

The Red Bull driver enters the new campaign off the back of two world titles, the second of which was secured in dominant fashion as Verstappen broke the record for number of wins in a season with 15, beating Charles Leclerc by 146 points.

The new RB19 looked ominously settled and quick during the Bahrain pre-season test, with Verstappen topping the timesheets in two of the three sessions he was behind the wheel.

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The third session saw Verstappen beaten only by Zhou Guanyu, who posted a late 'glory lap' to steal the session for Alfa Romeo.

Addressing the state of play ahead of the new season, which begins in Bahrain this weekend, Chandhok outlined Verstappen as the drivers' championship favourite.

New degree of maturity

"I think it is the first year Max heads into the season as the clear favourite," Chandhok told Sky Sports F1.

"Last year, there were so many unknowns with the new regulations, he is now a double world champion and he drive superbly last year with a new degree of maturity and experience.

"I think he has taken up that mantle as the favourite going into this year and they are going to be very hard to beat."

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