Max Verstappen is incredibly talented but ‘he was a bully after making his Formula 1 debut, a characteristic he has grown out of.
Italian journalist Leo Turrini claims that Max Verstappen was a “bully” when he first took his place on the F1 grid, despite the fact that he may have had incredible talent.
Verstappen made his Formula 1 debut in 2015. The talented driver skipped Formula 2 altogether and made a tremendous jump from Formula 3 to Formula 1.
Red Bull’s gamble paid off when they moved him up to the senior squad a year and a half into his Formula 1 career, and he went on to win his first race for Red Bull Racing, the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix.
Verstappen is on his way to winning the Drivers’ Championship for a third time in a row, meaning that both his performances and the results have only become better since joining Red Bull.
But, there have been lessons Verstappen learnt along the way to become a double world champion.
The driver was criticized by his rivals for moving dangerously under braking, which resulted in a ban that has since been lifted but only permits only one move.
Additionally, after the 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix, the FIA ordered him to carry out two days of community service for physically assaulting Esteban Ocon.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc all voiced concerns in the years that followed, but there also came two – most probably to be three – World championships and several records broken by the Dutchman.
Verstappen is on track to win three championships this year, set records for the most victories in a season, consecutive victories, and earliest title win date.
The journey Verstappen has taken is highlighted by his incredible performance to date, according to Italian journalist Turrini.
“Verstappen has matured over the years,” he said on his blog. “He’s always had incredible talent, but he was a bully to begin with.
“Now, he’s almost perfect.
“Verstappen is an absolute phenomenon. To deny it is foolish.
“Everyone can have the ideas he wants about the character, but if one argues Max as a driver, well, he’s an expert.
“Verstappen is definitely stronger than Perez – as well as almost all of his competitors in the present.”
Verstappen is to Perez, his teammate today, like Lionel Messi was to Leandro Paredes, another compatriot from Argentina; one played for Barcelona FC and the other for Juventus, Turini added.
“Verstappen is to Perez what Messi is to the former Juventus player Paredes,” he said. “Verstappen is stronger than Leclerc because when he had a car from him he won the world championship.
“Leclerc has never had it, no one can say, for example, how it would hold up to the horrendous pressure of 2021.”
