Verstappen Eyes Historic F1 Triumph, Targets Schumacher and Hamilton's Record
Nov.10 - Max Verstappen admits he could be in the running to match the achievements of the most successful drivers in Formula 1 history.
The 26-year-old Dutchman's performance this season for his third consecutive drivers' title was nothing short of imperious - and arguably monotonous.
"The fact that even the most ardent fans of Max Verstappen are showing signs of saturation is a sign of the future," De Limburger, a leading Dutch newspaper, declared this week.
And most informed insiders are expecting Red Bull to continue to lead the pack in 2024. La Gazzetta dello Sport's Paolo Filisetti wrote this week: "Technical staff have found areas to improve.
"The RB20 will see a major aerodynamic revolution. Not even gusts of wind would create any more problems, as happened in the Brazilian GP," he said.
Publicly, F1's leaders including FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali have put a brave face on the dominance, insisting fans are privileged to be witnessing a true F1 legend in action.
But a research analyst for Rosenblatt Securities, Barton Crockett, thinks Formula 1 needs to be worried about Verstappen.
"As great as Verstappen is," he told Time magazine, "right now he looks like the biggest risk to the business."
Haas driver Kevin Magnussen even admits: "I would get bored of it if I was watching."
For his part, Verstappen insists it's not boring from his vantage point to have even broken the great Alberto Ascari's long-standing 75 percent winning record rate this season.
"The NBA survived when the Chicago Bulls were dominating," he insists.
"At the time, or even afterwards, people are like, 'Oh, that was amazing'. If you are a real fan of the sport, you should be able to appreciate a team doing very well," Verstappen added.
F1, however, has rapidly grown in the past several years since US-centric Liberty Media bought the commercial rights in 2017 - attracting many brand new and arguably less knowledgeable fans from initiatives like the Netflix series Drive To Survive.
Verstappen is unmoved about what impact his continuing dominance might have on the bottom line, but he is at least aware of F1's sport-versus-show balancing-act.
"I would just keep in mind that the actual sport comes first, instead of the show," he insisted. "That, for me, is very important, and that eventually will also decide if I stay or not."
He is already signed up with Red Bull through 2028, meaning that by then, he might even have eclipsed Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton's all-time joint record of seven drivers' titles apiece.
"Would I like to win seven? Yeah, why not?" said Verstappen. "But even if I don't win seven, I know that there's still so many more things in life than F1. I'm already very happy with what I have achieved."
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You'll get there Max, provided the car keeps its edge
I agree with with what Max says, I loved the days when Max and Daniel were team mates, they always gave exciting racing. As when, a few years ago, the cars were doing all the work electronicky so that got a ban. It is the skill of the driver that makes a champion. Perhaps after 3 years as champion they should be given extra ballast to slow them down and then the sparks will fly. Now they are in the best car and become untouchable. All the drivers are great sportsmen, plus they are the top drivers in the world.
i hope Max continues to win.Hamilton wasnt complaing when he was on his way to 103 wins ,i think it is jealousy talking as im sure all the other 19 drivers would like to be Verstappen winning all the time .All the drivers have big egos and would like to be in Verstappens shoes
Always been years of domination since mid eighties, its all down to the person did people think Seb was an arse when he won 4, or Msc on his run , it'll be the same with Max, hes a different animal to Marilyn aka the Dame
My take: RB/VER have got two more seasons with an opportunity to dominate and roll op the points. If true, that will leave VER with 5 WDC's. After that, it gets much more difficult. Anybody who thinks VER will cruise to 150 wins and 10 WDC's should go to SportClips for a trim. Your hair is in your eyes.
I dont believe the valuation one bit , more than the Forbes’ estimated $3.8 billion for Mercedes.
I know that you are well into happy hour, but what the f**k are you talking about? Evaluation of what?
Big Jim is buying 25% of Mufc
From Another Site
Manchester United bid will have no financial or operational impact on Mercedes
Mercedes is already one of a number of teams part of the INEOS Sport group which additionally included the likes of OGC Nice, INEOS Britannia and seven times Tour de France winners INEOS Grenadiers.
But Manchester United would be the jewel in the crown with the valuation of the club set at £5 billion, more than the Forbes’ estimated $3.8 billion for Mercedes.
Despite the significant amount coming out of the INEOS bank account, a source has told PlanetF1.com that it “changes nothing” for the running of Mercedes’ Formula 1 team.
INEOS paid a reported £100 million to acquire 33 per cent of the F1 team in December 2020 but the purchase of United is not expected to have an impact both from an operational cost or on their investment in the Silver Arrows.
Another example of rubbish reporting 100M for 1/3 of the Merc team yeah right, and then the silly not adding up valuation
Always happy hour here lol
Got it. BTW, the MB evaluation included Lewie's bling.