Verstappen quiet about himself: "He spoke little and was quite introverted"

Max Verstappen was clearly present in Formula 1 this season. The Dutchman dared to make things difficult for Lewis Hamilton not only on the track, but also off the track. According to Xevi Pujolar, Verstappen did not always have this in his character.

The engineer experienced Verstappen in his early days, when he was just starting out at Toro Rosso. While he could immediately tell he was dealing with a special driver, Verstappen wasn't exactly a driver with a smooth talk. In fact, the 2021 world champion was rather quiet within his team and mostly absorbed the knowledge.

"He was very young and shy then. He spoke little and was quite introverted," Pujolar recalled in conversation with La Gazzetta dello Sport. "His way of expressing himself could be seen on the track and not with words. A normal guy who became number one in his category. Off the track he was as quiet as he is now, with few passions in life that he was interested in and following."

Verstappen's rapid development at Toro Rosso

Verstappen proved capable of learning at lightning speed like no other. Back in 2016, Red Bull Racing decided to swap him with Daniil Kvjat. Immediately in his first race, at the Spanish Grand Prix, Verstappen took victory.