Nov.21 (GMM) Max Verstappen’s father admits he has spoken to the triple world champion about his vocal frustration with Formula 1 over the entire Las Vegas GP weekend.
“You can always say some things,” Jos Verstappen, a former F1 driver, told De Telegraaf newspaper. “But in some cases you also need to be a bit more delicate.
“I told Max about this. Sometimes he needs it,” the Dutchman admitted.
“I think he gets tired of too many people. Max loves racing, as you can see. I understand him, and I understand that he prefers to drive on a circuit like Suzuka.
“But you can’t just kick everything without looking. Sometimes there are circuits that are less fun. And in the end the race was absolutely great,” Verstappen senior added.
Fellow Dutchman and ex-F1 driver Christijan Albers agrees that Verstappen’s mood and standpoint about Las Vegas contributed to a general negativity about the sport’s newest blue-riband event.
“There was so much negativity, and Max didn’t help,” he said.
“Max has this status as a world champion now. I understand that he’s at the end of his rope this season. Sometimes I understand his positions and sometimes I don’t.
“You also get older, you know what’s going on more and how important it is for Formula 1. America is simply the most important market,” Albers, 44, added.
Even Zandvoort boss Robert van Overdijk, who was in Las Vegas as part of a Dutch GP delegation to observe the first F1 event there in decades, defended the race organisers.
“I think what has been achieved there is impressive,” he said. “You should not underestimate how much work is involved.
“It’s like closing the Coolsingel (street) in Rotterdam for a few weeks. That is almost impossible to imagine.”
In an editorial, De Telegraaf newspaper declared that after days of Verstappen negativity and teething problems with the new event, Las Vegas ultimately delivered a spectacular event.
“All’s well that ends well for Formula 1 and the hugely hyped race in Las Vegas,” the editorial reads.
“After days of negative press, the main course was a complete success. Even Max Verstappen, who stole the show on the asphalt in Elvis overalls, suddenly became much more positive after all that strong criticism.”
Despite IndyCar being its own motor race category, exploding Formula 1 popularity is pouring over into IndyCar events. If you want to attend the 2024 Indianapolis 500, reserve your seats today as the race will sell out (like last year) in very short order.
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