‘He’s Like Michael Schumacher’: Ex-Ferrari Boss Admires Max Verstappen, Predicting 8 World Championships

When an F1 driver has had a season like Max Verstappen did in 2023, what more do you expect from them? Well, the answer is simple: we expect the same, if not more, over and over until they hang up their boots. These are the standards set by the likes of Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton. The two seven-time world champions have the entire world of F1 chasing the elusive No.8, and a former Ferrari boss believes Verstappen can do it.

The Dutchman completed the most dominating championship season in the sport’s history, and no one expects him to slow down anytime soon. With two more years under the same regulations, Verstappen is the favorite to win two more championships. However, former Ferrari General Manager Peter Windsor believes, with the traits Verstappen shares with Michael Schumacher, he can easily go on and win eight titles.

A Michael Schumacher trait could help Max Verstappen win eight championships

Every world champion in the sport’s history shares one or the other trait. Whether it be their speed, their fearlessness, or their ruthlessness, there are some commonalities. However, in his latest YouTube video, Windsor revealed a trait that Verstappen shares with Schumacher that makes him so devastatingly good. He revealed it when a fan asked, “Do you think Max could be the next seven-time champ? The form he is in is scary good. Fast as Hamilton with style and ruthlessness of Schumacher.”

This made Windsor compare and confess and say, “[Max Verstappen] cannot have failed to have been very technically in tune with what he needs in order to be quick. I’ve always said, particularly like Michael [Schumacher], I think, was one of the first to really take it to the next level of knowing exactly what he needed in a very complicated world of Formula 1 and simplified it to a point where he just could say, ‘This is what I want to do the lap, thank you very much.’” He added that Red Bull has confidence in Verstappen’s ability to know what will work for him and the car.

To finally answer the question, “Has he got the chance of winning eight world championships? Yeah!”

There is no doubt that Verstappen has the capability, maturity, and consistency to win seven, eight, or even nine world championships. However, as Windsor mentioned in his video, it’s never as straightforward in the world of F1. That being said, in the last couple of years, Verstappen has turned all doubt into belief when it comes to his comparison with and ranking among the all-time greats.

Read More: Despite Max Verstappen’s Complete Dominance, Schumacher Dynasty Expresses Scorn at Comparisons With Michael

Max Verstappen has also been compared to Ayrton Senna

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko is Verstappen’s biggest cheerleader. So, the Austrian boss often levies huge praise on the Dutchman during interviews. He receives some disagreement and even backlash because of the absurdity of his statements, though. However, the Dutchman has slowly but surely turned all his doubters into believers. Let us prove this with revelations made by Helmut Marko himself.

When Verstappen competed in Formula 3 in 2014, Marko scoped him out and told Toto Wolff that the Dutchman had Senna-esque qualities. The comparisons started right then, and they haven’t stopped since. Marko explained, “He has fantastic control of the car – especially on the limits. That’s why I compared him to Ayrton Senna in his early years.” Not everyone was pleased by this. However, as Marko explained, 2022 has shut that debate. “My good friend Gerhard Berger wrote to me at the time that the comparison was far too far-fetched. He no longer disagrees.” 

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This was the opinion based on his 2022 performances; imagine the perspective after 2023. This is precisely why many now believe he will be a seven or eight-time world champion. Three down, four more to go?