Max Verstappen has been warned about his negative stance on the sport’s new technical regulations
F1 driver and former GP2 champion Jolyon Palmer has cautioned Max Verstappen that his critical position on the sport’s new technical regulations could provide Isack Hadjar with the ideal chance to establish himself at Red Bull. The four-time world champion has consistently expressed his dissatisfaction with the FIA’s incoming engine rules, confessing he is ‘not enjoying the whole formula’ with Red Bull at present.
Towards the end of last month, Verstappen even suggested he is ‘thinking’ about his future in the sport, hinting he could dramatically depart if his concerns aren’t addressed. Yet Palmer reckons those remarks will only bolster new team-mate Hadjar’s prospects of securing his position within the team.
Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Palmer said: “He’s just not enjoying anything about it; he’s not enjoying racing the car, not enjoying driving the cars and the patience, the different tactics and management you need behind the wheel is not what he inherently wants to do.
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“The pace of the Red Bull is also not good. So if he does well, he can qualify seventh or eighth, and he just wants to get in the car and drive it the old school way.
“He’s still doing a solid job, but if you think about Red Bull, it is a good time for Hadjar. I’m impressed with how he’s started, and then you’re looking across at the main guy not enjoying things.
Palmer added: “You then think: ‘This is a chance for me to say: ‘Look, I’m good, come and galvanise behind me guys if you want’ and try to keep that enthusiasm going.
“It must be difficult for Red Bull to have your champion oozing so much negativity when you walk in the garage and you’re strapping your driver in, but he’s not loving being there. Max has been so vocal about it, but he still has to keep working, and I’m sure he is still as hungry as ever.”
Verstappen came home eighth in the previous Grand Prix in Japan and will be aiming to improve on that result when the Miami Grand Prix takes place on 3 May.
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