formula 1
“Not fair”: No control brake for Verstappen
Currently dominating Formula 1: Max Verstappen. photo
© Joan Monfort/AP/dpa
Formula 1 is groaning under the dominance of Max Verstappen and Red Bull. In Canada, the world champion and his team have special milestones.
The overpowering Max Verstappen does not have to fear a sudden rule brake despite the renewed threat of boredom at the World Cup. Before the Canadian Grand Prix, Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali ruled out using short-term rule changes to create more excitement in the title race.
“That’s not correct because we shouldn’t be seen as part of a manipulation. That’s not right and it’s also not fair,” assured the managing director in a podcast of the racing series before the eighth round of the World Championship in Montreal on Sunday.
The fact that Domenicali had to ask himself about the monotony at the top on an official channel shows the dilemma of the Formula 1 makers. Red Bull has won all seven races of the season so far, five of them Verstappen alone. The double world champion is already 53 points ahead of stable colleague Sergio Perez in the overall standings.
17 wins in 18 races across the seasons
Across the seasons, the team has even achieved 17 victories in the last 18 Grand Prix. The 100th victory in Red Bull’s Formula 1 history can probably only be prevented by a possible rain chaos on the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve at the weekend.
But the bosses of the premier class are still relaxed, even if a title thriller and gripping duels at the front would be good for further growth in the booming PS business. There have always been phases in which a racing team was superior, said Domenicali. In fact, Mercedes dominated Formula 1 from 2014 to 2020. Before that, Sebastian Vettel drove to the title in the Red Bull four years in a row, Michael Schumacher crushed the competitors in the Ferrari at the beginning of the millennium.
“Our goal, if you take a strategic approach, should be that these cycles are shorter in the future,” said Domenicali. Emergency measures for more spectacle, such as a reversed starting order or World Championship points during training, are discussed again and again, but have so far been rejected as too artificial. Additional weights, which slow down the successful in other racing series, contradict the spirit of Formula 1.
Verstappen not very enthusiastic
In any case, the long-term winner Verstappen has already shown how little he thinks about changes to the classic Grand Prix format. The Dutchman disparagingly compared the additional sprint races, which will be held six times this year, to “gambling in the casino”. The 25-year-old even threatened to withdraw: “I hope there won’t be too many changes. Otherwise I won’t be around much longer.”
For the time being, Verstappen continues to knit his legend. With his 41st Grand Prix victory in Montreal, he could catch up with the icon Ayrton Senna. Then the world championship leader would only have Lewis Hamilton, Schumacher, Vettel and Alain Prost ahead of him. Record winner Hamilton even believes that Verstappen can “absolutely” surpass his record of 103 successes. “He has a long career ahead of him. After all, records are there to be broken,” said the Mercedes superstar.
The hope of the competition to be able to catch up thanks to a penalty from the world association Red Bull has fallen sharply. Because of a breach of the budget rules, the top team is not allowed to use its wind tunnel to further develop the car this season. “What we lost in time in the wind tunnel, we gained in motivation,” said team boss Christian Horner.
The question now is whether Red Bull can maintain its full lead until the current regulations expire at the end of 2025 and whether Verstappen can remain the almost everything winner until then. Series boss Domenicali is particularly relaxed with a view to his market data. With traditionalists, the dominance of a driver reduces interest somewhat. “It’s really not very important for the new markets, the new fans that are coming into our business,” Domenicali said recently.