Max Verstappen blames his nationality for not being taken seriously in F1
Max Verstappen reckoned that the Netherlands wasn't taken too seriously in Formula 1 in the past which was bound to change now.
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Max Verstappen (via Red Bull)
Max Verstappen is regarded as one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1, if not the greatest. Despite multiple Dutchmen having participated in the sport in its history, Verstappen was the first one to amass such dominant results (four world titles). The pinnacle of motorsport still remains dominant in the English masses, leaving the 27-year-old disappointed that his country is not taken more seriously.
Max Verstappen won his fourth consecutive world championship in the 2024 season and joined the likes of some highly successful people in Formula 1. Verstappen recalled the past and reckoned that Dutchmen weren’t taken too seriously in the sport. The 27-year-old pointed out that amongst the dominant countries in motorsports, the Netherlands wasn’t present which was now changing.
As a Dutchman, you weren’t really taken seriously for a very long time. If you look at the dominant countries in motorsport, we were not among them. That is changing now.
Max Verstappen told De Telegraaf
Verstappen highlighted that Formula 1 remained an English-oriented sport which caused the rest of the countries to remain a minority. The Dutchman had pointed out the problems caused by to British majority in the sport over the 2024 season. However, it is now established that very good drivers are participating from the Netherlands and other non-standard racing countries.
Formula 1 is an English-oriented sport and in terms of media and things like that you are in the minority. But in terms of drivers, it is increasingly being established that very good drivers can also come from the Netherlands and not just from the standard racing countries.
Max Verstappen added
Max Verstappen highlighted ‘problem’ in Formula 1 regarding British media
Over the 2024 season, Max Verstappen had commented how his not having a British passport caused him troubles with the stewards. Moreover, the media team consisted of a majority of English reporters which caused problems. Verstappen highlighted that over 80 to 85% of people in the media were English. Subsequently, the Dutchman noted that some things written about him were not fully or fair.
The problem in F1 is that 80 to 85 per cent of the media is British. And I did feel that some things which were written about me were not fair.
Max Verstappen noted
Formula 1 has continued to grow in other major countries in recent years with a new era of drivers coming in. The American involvement is also supposed to increase in the sport which would cause the nationality bias to tone down. Apart from these issues, Verstappen will continue to focus on his performances and extend his legacy in the sport.
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Aditya Pandya
(1448 Articles Published)