Surer: “The new regulations have taken away the strengths of Vettel and Verstappen”

Verstappen: doubts about the future The days pass and Max Verstappen is approaching this weekend’s appointment with the NLS championship at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, but in all this a question mark remains from the Japanese Grand Prix: will the Dutchman really retire from Formula 1? After the weekend in Suzuka, the Red Bull driver did not hide his disappointment with the new technical regulations introduced this year, going so far as to threaten to leave the Circus. Furthermore, with the news of the move of his track engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to McLaren for 2028, the rumors about his possible arrival at Woking for that season have also increased. The ‘curse’ of the Red Bull champions It remains to be written, but Verstappen’s results crisis in his first year with the new rules seems reminiscent of that experienced by a former Red Bull driver: Sebastian Vettel. Also the winner of four consecutive world titles with the Milton Keynes team (from 2010 to 2013), the German had serious difficulties in adapting to the new regulations introduced in 2014, to the point of never again climbing to the top of the world, also thanks to the excessive power of Mercedes. It was Marc Surer, in F1 between the ’70s and ’80s and now a television commentator in Switzerland, who found the points in common between the difficulties of the two drivers: “It’s exactly the same situation – explained the 74-year-old to formel1.de – Vettel became world champion with the blown diffuser. Then came the hybrid cars with the new regulations (switching from V8 to V6 turbo engines, ed.), the new rules, and that advantage is He was a genius at practically driving into corners and accelerating straight away to generate more downforce. It’s similar to what’s happening today with Max Verstappen, because the regulations took away his main strength. Now he can’t do it anymore.