Szafnauer refutes criticism of Verstappen: 'We should celebrate him'

Max Verstappen is currently unbeatable in Formula 1. For his own fans, it is perfectly acceptable that the Dutchman wins almost every race he starts. But others viewers want more competition. Otmar Szafnauer, former team boss of Aston Martin, Alpine and Racing Point, is especially an admirer of Verstappen's class. He reveals this in an interview with the Daily Mail.

The American with Romanian roots has been around in the F1 world for many years, and he reassures F1 fans who are now fed up with Verstappen: "You can’t get rid of Max. The sport has gone through this before. Max will not be champion forever. It will change. We have had Michael (Schumacher) and Lewis (Hamilton)," Szafnauer argues.

Fans who have followed the sport for many years know what Szafnauer is talking about: periods of dominance by one team or driver are perfectly normal. But a new group of F1 fans has emerged in recent years; people who may not understand all the ins and outs of the sport. These are some of the supporters who have been introduced to Formula 1 via Netflix.

Will Netflix fans stay engaged with a dominant Verstappen?

"Now you have got the Netflix fans who are just learning and you don’t want to lose them, but if Max is winning all the time, will you lose them? I don’t know the answer to that. But we have to celebrate Max for his brilliance and not chastise him [due to dominance]," argues Szafnauer, who does hope that the Red Bull driver gets more opposition soon. Preferably within his own team.

Who could beat Verstappen? Szafnauer is honest: he does not know if anyone will really succeed. "For me, I love Lewis but he is at a different age in his career. I would stick Lando (Norris of McLaren) up against Max."