Former F1 driver: 'Verstappen feels more pain than euphoria at that moment'

There isn't much doubt surronding Max Verstappen's third world title. The Dutchman has a very generous lead and is likely to secure the world title as early as Saturday in Qatar, six Grands Prix before the end. Former Dutch F1 driver Jan Lammers spoke about the situation if Verstappen wins his third world title.

Suppose Verstappen doesn't win the race, but does win the championship, will he still be happy? "There you have a very good point. If he doesn't win the race, and does win the world championship then he feels that pain more than the euphoria of the world championship," Lammers told GPblog in an exclusive interview.

Lammers: 'Maybe Verstappen was already champion at Zandvoort'

"If we are going to look at his points total at the end of the year later on, we will find out that, at the time we are having this conversation, he was already champion a long time ago," Lammers added. "If you take the point standings from Zandvoort, then maybe at Zandvoort he was already champion, only we won't know that until the end of the season."

"Behind him people take away each other's points," Lammers continued. "Then it's Ferrari again, the McLarens and the Mercedes. They steal those points away. Now Perez, for example, might find his form again for a few races. He has obviously not reached his own potential in the last few races, because he can do much better than he has shown," the former Formula 1 driver concluded.