Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto has said that he hopes Max Verstappen will win this year's championship, though he thinks the smart money should be on Lewis Hamilton for the crown.

This year's Formula 1 championship has proven an intense battle between the Dutchman and the Briton, and it could yet go either way.

Indeed, the second half of the campaign is set up to be thrilling, and there's a hope that the battle will go right to the wire this season.

Certainly, that is what Ferrari boss Binotto is hoping for and, indeed, he's revealed that he would like to see Max take the crown in order to shake things up a little bit, though he still expects Lewis and Mercedes to end up as our eventual winners this season:

“It’s an exciting challenge between two great drivers and I hope they fight to the end,” said Binotto via Gazzetta dello Sport.

“If I had to bet, I would bet on Lewis because I think Mercedes will win in the end.

“But I’m rooting for Max. It would do the sport good to break the status quo.”

Both drivers would be worthy winners of the title this season based on performances so far but, of course, we've still got a half of the campaign to play out and between now and then, we will see one of them emerge triumphant over the other.

Let's just hope, as Binotto says, that the fight will go right down to the final races of the year.