Max Verstappen has defended the “honest answer” he gave following his heavy criticism of the show element of Formula 1.
In the build-up to the penultimate race of the season in Las Vegas, the three-time F1 champion delivered a memorable diatribe, slating the razzmatazz that accompanied F1’s first promotion of a grand prix in its history.
Verstappen described the events in Las Vegas as “99 percent show, one percent sporting event”, adding that whilst he enjoyed being in Sin City, it was “not for racing”.
F1 owners Liberty Media invested more than half a billion US dollars in the event, yet Verstappen did not feel he needed to be a standard bearer on their behalf, despite his status as champion.
At the time Verstappen, who lives only for the racing, pointedly stated that Liberty Media would “still make money”, regardless of whether he liked the event or not.
Asked whether a balance had been struck between sport and show, taking in the season as a whole, Verstappen replied: “Ideally speaking, from my side, I would race on all the great tracks around the world. Unfortunately, that’s not possible in F1.
“I understand that side of it, but when people ask me a question, it’s important to give an honest answer, and that’s what I did.
“You have to see it from both sides, the sports side of it, but also, the commercial side of it.
“At the moment, I’m still not happy, let’s say it like that.”
On the track, Red Bull driver Verstappen delivered a phenomenal performance, winning 21 of 22 grands prix en route to securing his third title, and breaking numerous records along the way.
Verstappen maintains that setting such records was far from his mind.
“This season we won a lot as a team, but also it’s just been really enjoyable to work with everyone inside the team,” he said.
“Once you’re winning a few in a row, you want to keep that momentum going, and the pressure is always on. You always want to do well.
“Of course, I was never thinking about trying to break all these records. I was just trying to do the best I could every single race weekend.
“And enjoy it as well at the same time because these great moments don’t come along that often. It was a very, very good year.”
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