Sirotkin critical of Verstappen: "Why do you have to touch the car?"

Sergey Sirotkin doesn't understand why Max Verstappen went to look at Lewis Hamilton's car after the sprint race. The current leader in the world championship touched the rear wing of the Mercedes and for that he had to come to the stewards. He got away with a fine, but Sirotkin doesn't understand why Verstappen took the risk.

Why look at Mercedes car?

"I've never really understood this, this thing in parc fermé where drivers stand around looking at other cars," says Sirotkin in his column for Formule1.nl. The former F1 driver doesn't see the added value of it. "Why do you have to touch the car, what do you learn from that? I get that you are interested in the cockpit, in the functions on a steering wheel or what type of lever is used for the clutch. But that feeling, looking, walking around cars: no, I don't understand that."

According to the Russian driver, it is virtually impossible to pick out something with the naked eye that will make a world of difference. "An experienced engineer might see something but otherwise it's pointless. Teams have photographers who take pictures from certain angles that are more useful than what Max could see now."

Verstappen impresses too

Hamilton was unleashed on Sunday and that got him very positive reviews, but Sirotkin doesn't want to ignore the fact that Verstappen also had an excellent day at the Interlagos circuit. "Days like Saturday and Sunday are when the greats do something special, perform at their best. Both Verstappen and Hamilton were really great. Many drivers can have a good day but can't recover when things go wrong. Lewis had to endure a grid penalty and a disqualification and still won on Sunday", he concludes.

The Formula 1 teams will descend on Qatar this weekend. For the first time in the history of the pinnacle of motor sport the Losail International Circuit will be used. The track looks set to favour Hamilton's W12 due to a number of long straights.