F1 News: Former Champion On Max Verstappen Teammate - "Max Would Probably Want Lewis Hamilton"
Surprisingly, former F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve thinks that Max Verstappen would prefer Lewis Hamilton as his teammate to show the world that he can beat him. The rivalry between the two F1 legends has been an intense one with both colliding into each other on many occasions in the past.
2021 saw the rivalry reach its highest point when both their cars came in contact with each other on circuits such as Jeddah, Interlagos, Monza, and Silverstone before ending the season on a highly controversial note in Abu Dhabi where the championship trophy was handed over to Verstappen.
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The former Canadian F1 driver stands by his belief that Verstappen wants Hamilton as a teammate. But, he isn't sure if Red Bull is on the same page with the Dutch driver. While talking to the press about Red Bull's second driver, he told Autosport:
“I don’t think [the team] care [who it is]. They have Max.
"So, right now, Max can win like this. They are easily in front, they get all the image they want, why should they care?
"Put a young guy there that wants to show he’s the new world leader and stirs the pot.
"I think Max would probably want Lewis… so he can show the world he can beat Lewis.
"That would be his ultimate goal. So, that’s probably something he would want, but I’m not sure if Red Bull would want that. I don’t know.”
Villeneuve went on to talk about why there should be no objection against Verstappen's monopoly in Formula 1. Last weekend's Dutch GP saw him win his ninth GP in a row. He said:
“It’s not the rules that make him the best. He is the best. People should be happy and proud of that.
"It used to be Lewis and Mercedes [who earned a drivers’ and teams’ title double between 2014 and 2020], and nobody complained.
"So why didn’t people complain about Lewis, but complain now about Max?
"I don’t understand the concept there.”
As Villeneuve continued, he added that F1 is currently in its best form than any time in the sport's history. Wondering why people complain about the sport, he said:
“It’s Max who is dominating. It’s not Red Bull, We’ve never had F1 so close. If you look first [place] to 12th, sometimes it’s a second, two seconds [gap].
"It’s never been like that in history and people complain. This is the best it’s ever, ever been.”
Villeneuve brings an entirely fresh perspective to the common notion that F1's regulations and Red Bull's monopoly have put the wheel-to-wheel sport in jeopardy. I guess it all depends on the way you look at it.
