Max Verstappen does not always agree with the direction in which F1 is evolving and the question sometimes arises as to how long he will continue to feel like it. Martin Brundle thinks he has found an answer to that.
The three-time world champion has already stated more than once that he does not agree at all with the fact that more and more races are being added to the F1 calendar and the sprint races are also not to his liking. Verstappen has also made it clear that it is these things that sometimes make him doubt whether he should continue for much longer.
He already has a contract with Red Bull until the end of 2028. Sky analyst Martin Brundle also does not believe that Verstappen would hang up his helmet quickly, as the disappointment was still too great after his failure in Melbourne last weekend.
“Despite his incredible run of successes, Verstappen was initially very angry that his car had broken down,” Brundle wrote in his column for ‘Sky Sports’.
“Once the adrenaline washes away he has now become good at controlling these moods, but if he ever loses that fiery passion in the heat of the moment then you know he is preparing for retirement.”
Due to Verstappen’s failure, Carlos Sainz managed to achieve the third victory of his career. Brundle thinks that Sainz would have had a good chance of victory even without Verstappen’s problems.
“The big question is whether Ferrari would have beaten Red Bull anyway,” he said. “Sainz had already overtaken Verstappen, but the RB20 was struggling.”
“Sergio Perez in the second Red Bull finished only fifth, around half a minute behind, before the virtual safety car intervened on the final lap, but he apparently suffered some aerodynamic damage after showing very good pace earlier.”
“McLaren kept up with Ferrari remarkably well with their race pace, suggesting Verstappen could be among them.”
“We will of course never know the answer to the question, but my feeling was telling me all the time that it was Ferrari’s day.”