Verstappen: "You have to be like a factory team" to beat Ferrari & Mercedes

Max Verstappen has explained that his team Red Bull Racing need to operate like a factory team if they want to seriously compete for the title with the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari.

Verstappen, 20, is already in his fourth season in Formula One but has yet to taste real success. He's won four races since his promotion to Red Bull in May 2016, but has never really challenged for either title with the Bulls.

At Goodwood, Verstappen was asked about Red Bull's new partnership with Honda, and how he thinks it'll go.

“I’ll have to wait and see,” he told Goodwood.com.

That seems to be the most positive take-away for Verstappen, as he explains that it's crucial that you need to operate like a factory team to compete for titles. They won't be a factory team with Honda as Red Bull is not their team, but they'll be exclusive partners, which is as close as you can get as a team.

“If you are fighting Mercedes and Ferrari you need to be like a factory team because they are like that,” the Dutchman explained.