Max Verstappen plays down Michael Schumacher comparisons
“He reminds me of Michael Schumacher in so many ways,” the Dutchman’s Brawn said before adding: “I remember Max’s early days in Formula 1, where his pace was obvious – Now he has grown into an outstanding racer.”
“Of course, you can always get some of the same attitude or whatever, or you can be compared sometimes, but from my side, I never did. I just wanted to be right. me.”
At the age of 17 years and 166 days, Verstappen became the youngest driver in F1 history when he competed at the 2015 Australian Grand Prix. He said, over the years, he has matured as a driver. .
“[I’m] more relaxed, more consistent, and know how to build a weekend and the like,” he added.
“I just feel very comfortable… I’m a very laid-back person anyway so for me it’s never been too much pressure, but I’m more relaxed in a way that I know what’s coming. go out.
“I’ve been through a lot so by the end of the week, I mean, I’m excited to be racing, but I’m not so excited by the other stuff around it because you’ve been going through so many different emotions. throughout the weekend and throughout the year.”
The Dutchman’s win at Silverstone was the ninth of his career, but crossing the finish line still excites him.
“Winning is a good thing,” he said. “A good qualifier can excite me. Just being with the team and working with the mechanics, and when they do a really good pitstop, it’s also a great feeling.”
Title challenge on?
Verstappen finished ahead of Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and Valterri Bottas in sweltering conditions last Sunday.
Heading into the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend, Verstappen is second in the drivers’ championship standings – 30 points behind world champion Hamilton.
But such is Mercedes’ dominance so far during these 13 racing seasons – the team leads Red Bull in second place in the constructors standings with 67 points – the Red Bull driver doesn’t expect to hit a single Challenge the title in the remaining eight races.
“So far we’ve had one race that we’ve had, maybe the fastest car, but all the other races we haven’t, so we just have to be realistic at the moment. “, Verstappen said from Barcelona.
“From my side, I’m not thinking about winning at the moment. I just want to try and do the best I can every weekend.”
Fight for equality
The F1 2020 season starts in July at the Austrian Grand Prix, 4 months later than planned because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Since the reboot drivers have joined F1’s “We Race As One” initiative to fight racism and promote equality and inclusion.
Five races into the season, Verstappen says that while the campaign is going well, more needs to be done.
“It’s going well in terms of how we present it but of course, at the end of the day it’s about action. We continue to show our support, because I think everyone is supportive, this is very important, and time will tell of course what will happen,” he said.
Asked about whether he and the other drivers would talk to Hamilton about the campaign, Verstappen said: “Of course we talk about it. We have our driver briefings. but of course we keep going because we are all members of GPDA (Grand Prix Drivers Association).
“Everybody is very open and everyone is very supportive and everyone wants exactly the same thing. I think Lewis appreciates that, and not only Lewis has to appreciate that, but the whole world. That’s what we’re doing, we’re just trying to show our support.”
https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/14/motorsport/max-verstappen-formula-one-michael-schumacher-spt-intl/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fedition_motorsport+%28RSS%3A+CNNi+-+Motorsport%29 | Max Verstappen plays down Michael Schumacher comparisons
