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Formula One F1 – Miami Grand Prix – Miami International Autodrome, Miami, Florida, U.S. – May 7, 2022 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen reacts after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Brian Snyder
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Formula One F1 – Miami Grand Prix – Miami International Autodrome, Miami, Florida, U.S. – May 7, 2022 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen reacts after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Brian Snyder
F1 fans have different opinions about the Dutch driver, Max Verstappen. The 24-year-old is one of the youngest F1 champions and has been dominating the grid since last season.
With winning comes a lot of love as well as criticism. Verstappen is no stranger to this, with many rival camps often attacking his personality for various reasons.
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Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton made Verstappen the villain
To Max’s credit, he actually has a few friends on the grid. He gets along really well with most of the drivers and shares a great bond with Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris. Both the McLaren teammates speak highly of Max and even take inspiration from his driving. Max, who is known to be aggressive on the grid, has taken some heat for his headstrong driving in 2021.
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Formula One F1 – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – December 11, 2021 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after qualifying in pole position alongside McLaren’s Lando Norris, who qualified in third position Pool via REUTERS/Kamran Jebreili
F1 fans sometimes attach Verstappen’s on-grid aggressiveness to his off-grid persona. His continuous banter with Lewis Hamilton particularly made him a target for many.
However, former British racing driver Max Fewtrell recently gave his take on the Verstappen saga. Fewtrell, who drove for Hitech Grand Prix in 3, said, “You don’t like Max cause of Drive to Survive? He actually gets this kind of villain persona.I don’t know why, he’s actually a really nice bloke. I don’t get it. Max Verstappen is literally a really nice guy.”
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The driver claims DTS misrepresented him
Verstappen has garnered hate from one more critical point: Drive to Survive. The series, as he believes, has misrepresented him. In the Dutchman’s own words, “a lot of it is fake.”
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The Red Bull driver has stopped participating in the series’ interviews and has refused to change his mind. Verstappen believes that a lot of things are overtly dramatized and they fake rivalries.
In fact, he even took a stand for Norris, who has also received some criticism after this season. The Brit’s choice of words for teammate Ricciardo was not the best sometimes. However, Verstappen backed his friend. He called out the series for not presenting Norris in the greatest light.
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Many believe that a person’s professional and personal life should be kept separate. And Verstappen has grown a lot over the years, which is reflected in his calm, sometimes sassy but authentic talking, especially during this season.
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