Verstappen retires, dad Jos is a fireman: “I think he’ll stay in F1, changing the rules will help”

Max Verstappen’s bad moment It is certainly not an easy period for Max Verstappen in F1: first the stomach aches about the current rules – which are unlikely to change substantially after the many meetings scheduled in recent days – then the awareness of the difficulties of Red Bull, which is struggling more with the chassis of a Pierre Waché already on the gridiron than with the new engine packaged with the collaboration of Ford (so much so that it seems that the Milton Keynes team will not be able to access the benefits of the ADUO). Finally, as the icing on the cake, the separation from his historic track engineer and friend Gianpiero Lambiase who, starting from 2028, will join McLaren in a role as right-hand man to team principal Andrea Stella. Jos speaks Despite the many critical issues and the consequent ambitions in GT3 races such as the 24 Hours of the Nurburgring Nordschleife in which Max Verstappen will be the protagonist already this year, father Jos does not believe that Lambiase’s farewell – who will however remain in Red Bull, in his place on the wall, at least until the end of the 2027 World Championship – is decisive in pushing his son out of F1. “Many things have changed – explains the former F1 driver on the eve of the TAS Rally, in Belgium, which sees him busy over the weekend – especially after four world titles and having achieved great results together. Obviously the choice depends only on Max, but personally I think he will continue to race in Formula 1”. “I think that in the end it will remain in the paddock – he adds – also because it seems that Formula 1 and the FIA want to change the regulations anyway, and what they can do this year will already be helpful. The fans and drivers complain all the time, I think they know how to intervene. As a driver, I certainly don’t like these regulations very much. I watch the races and at a certain point I simply turn off the television, because this is not what Formula 1 should represent. It is no longer true that the maximum is asked of the driver, now it’s more of a race for the engineers.” “The driver has to take his foot off the accelerator often and, because of this, he can’t really make a difference anymore, and I think that’s a shame. Usually you had to brake late, make a difference in fast corners, but with these cars that’s no longer possible. GT3 races? Once upon a time all those drivers wanted F1, it’s crazy that those races are now better than Formula 1. But there’s still a long way to go,” concluded Jos, Max Verstappen’s father.