F1 champion claims Red Bull don’t need Max Verstappen
Associated Press1997 Formula 1 world champion, Jacques Villeneuve, has claimed that Red Bull do not need Max Verstappen to be successful, arguing that Fernando Alonso could achieve the same success for the constructors’ champions should the Dutchman leave.
Rumors have emerged that Verstappen could be in line for a shock move to Mercedes, as fans start to consider what life without the 26-year-old at Red Bull could look like.
Despite dominating F1 for the last three seasons, Villeneuve is adamant that Verstappen is not the key to Red Bull’s success.
“Who is to say that [team principal, Christian] Horner is not the huge asset?” he told OLBG regarding Verstappen’s position at Red Bull.
“Would the team be as good without Horner? That is a difficult one. Would the team win without Verstappen? Probably. Max is winning because he has an amazing car and Red Bull is winning because they have an amazing driver.
“But he is not the only amazing driver that exists. Put Alonso in that car and he would be winning as well.
“The same thing happened in the past with Sebastian Vettel. No one could imagine him driving in another team. It just looked weird. But when it happened people just went with it. And they ended up winning with someone else. So, a team is always bigger than the driver.”
Verstappen is hot on the heels of Vettel in his pursuit of four successive drivers’ titles at Red Bull. The German achieved the feat with the Milton Keynes-based outfit from 2010 to 2013.
A shock DNF at last week’s Australian Grand Prix has seen Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ championship cut to just four points, with the three-time world champion no doubt eager to restore his cushion further at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix.
