Why is Max Verstappen so angry?
Max Verstappen was seen visibly livid after he finished second to teammate Perez in the Jeddah Corniche Circuit
Follow Us
All those who have followed the exploits of Max Verstappen, since the time he became Formula One champion for the first time in 2021, will agree he doesn’t usually blow his fuse. Yet, what one saw on Sunday night in the desert duels in Saudi Arabia — not literally though — was Max Verstappen dealing with technical issues and then proclaiming he is not here to be second.
First things first, for all the drama and excitement which was witnessed in the season’s second race in a packed F1 calendar, this was not the way Max Verstappen would have wanted to race in his quick Red Bull. Before he left for the Jeddah Cornice Circuit in Saudi Arabia, from Europe, he was not well. Max had been hit by a stomach bug and he had posted on his social media handle he would be flying into Jeddah at the last minute.
Champion Max, who won the first race in Bahrain with the ease of Usain Bolt on a 100 metres track, had expected to do well in Saudi Arabia. The way the calendar has undergone a rejig since the time of the Covid pandemic has been interesting. Traditionally, the season would begin at Albert Park in Melbourne and then move to other parts of the world.
From testing in Europe to racing in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia has been very different. Yet, for all those who had a glimpse of the Red Bull beast for the 2023 season, speed was never in doubt. The worst of critics have gone gaga over Red Bull, some in envy, others in jealousy. This includes former seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who still fancies his chances of winning an eighth World Championship. Given the “shit car” that Mercedes has produced for the 2023 season, Hamiton has been frothing at the car and abusing all and sundry.
Even during winter testing, Hamilton had said all unpalatable truths about the car which was being built. He knew it did not have furious pace. Even after Sunday in Jeddah, Hamilton was emphatic when he said the Red Bull is an altogether different car. There has been less of Hamilton and more of Max Verstappen, the last few years.
From where Max began on the grid to finishing second was something only he could have done. Yet, Max has been cribbing, almost to a point of cursing his team and mate Sergio Perez. From beyond the safety of pit walls and sitting in the audience with ear muffs on, one does not really know what all conversation goes on between radios of the cars, drivers and the team management.
Max Verstappen has come out smoking on the reliability of the car, which is a major issue. There has been an issue with the drive shaft, from one day before the race, in Q2. One would think there is a certain amount of give and take in a team when the 1-2 finish sees a change of names. No way, F1 is not for losers, when you are at the top of the form in your racing life.
This is not the first time one has seen a champion in anger nor will this be the last time. For those who still have vivid memories of legend Michael Schumacher of Prancing Horse fame in the red Ferrari, he could never digest it if Felippe Massa could do better. The team builds heroes of sorts. And the champion drivers acquire a larger-than-life status. With Michael Schumacher as the lead driver, even if Massa was going to come close, team orders would have never let the Brazilian race ahead.
In case you missed it: Sergio Perez demands a Red Bull team order review as Max Verstappen stole the fastest lap
Reliability issue has Max Verstappen worked up
F1 is a complex matrix. It has been a preserve of drivers who have aura, ego and that invincible status. So, for Max Verstappen to be angry is understandable. “It’s not only about the pace of the car, we need to make sure we are reliable without any issues,” said Max Verstappen late on Sunday night. “My first weekend [in Bahrain] was not very clean, because of just the big balance shift from testing to the race weekend, some other things which were going on in the background, and now again after three positive practice sessions of course I have an issue in qualifying,” he added.
For all those who think there is great camaraderie and friendship between the two guys who form a team as lead drivers in F1, Max Vertsappen’s comments open up Pandora’s Box. There is no love lost between teammates, so one can well imagine what goes on between the top team and those teams which lack pace.
Red Bull is the envy but Mercedes looks limp this season, where just two GPs are over. To expect they can soup up the car in the coming weeks is daydreaming. Surely, F1 is not a sport where this is give and take. These drivers are as aggressive as boxers in a ring. Thank God, the gloves they wear are so different to what one wears in a ring!
Related Articles:
F1 Saudi Arabian GP : Fernando Alonso’s 100th podium is reinstated following a blunder by the FIA
Stay Updated!
S Kannan
(382 Articles Published)