Max Verstappen says swearing penalty could hasten his F1 exit
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Red Bull's Max Verstappen during a post-race press conference after finishing second place in the Singapore Grand Prix.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SINGAPORE – Max Verstappen suggested he could turn his back on Formula One sooner than expected if the sport’s governing body stopped him having fun and being himself.
Red Bull’s three-time world champion was ordered by stewards to do “community work of public interest” with the International Automobile Federation (FIA) after he used a swear word
The penalty, which he described as “super silly”, led the Dutch driver to subsequently stage a one-man protest by giving only short answers or offering “no comment” to reporters in the official FIA post-qualifying press conference on Sept 21.
He did the same after finishing second in the night race behind McLaren rival Lando Norris on Sept 22, using the opportunity to explain further why he felt so strongly about the penalty.
“These kind of things definitely decide my future as well – when you can’t be yourself or you have to deal with these kind of silly things,” the 26-year-old said.
“I think now I’m at the stage of my career that you don’t want to be dealing with this all the time.
“It’s really tiring. Of course, it’s great to have success and win races but once you have accomplished all that, winning championships and races, then you want to just have a good time as well.”
Verstappen has spoken previously about retiring from Formula One while still comparatively young, emphasising that he would not go on as long as the likes of Lewis Hamilton, 39, and Fernando Alonso, 43.
“If you have to deal with all these kind of silly things, for me, that is not a way of continuing in the sport, that’s for sure,” he added.
Asked if the FIA might relent if they were told they risked pushing a multiple world champion out of the sport, Verstappen doubted they would take it very seriously.
“For me, of course, at one point, when it’s enough, it’s enough. And we’ll see. I mean, like I said, racing will go on,” he said. “F1 will go on also without me. It’s not a problem. But it’s also not a problem for me, it is how it is.”
At the end of the day, Verstappen is also keen to explore other forms of motor racing once his contract with Red Bull ends in 2028.
“If you can’t really be yourself, like to the fullest, then it’s better not to speak,” he added.
“But that’s what no one wants, because then you become a robot and it is not how you should be going about it in the sport.” REUTERS, AFP
