“We Really Have to Keep Pushing”: Max Verstappen Expecting a Lewis Hamilton-Like Fight as the Dutch Lion Gears Up For the 2023 Season

Max Verstappen may not have started the 2022 season on a high, but he finished it in fashion. It was a dominant season where he won the title with 4 races to go and broke multiple records. One would think the Dutchman would like to have his authority go unrivaled for years, but it’s quite the opposite. He craves some worthy competition next season, a season that will be longer and more testing.

Max Verstappen is not a fan of Formula 1 seasons getting longer. He is definitely not pleased with the 2023 calendar which is set to feature 24 races. Red Bull’s golden boy is, however, up for the challenge.

Max Verstappen does not think Red Bull will be as dominant next season as they were in 2022

Red Bull’s RB18 early in the season suffered from the car being overweight. Taking advantage, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc won 2 races from the first 3 fixtures and was 46 points ahead of the eventual champion at one point in the season. The Milton-Keynes-based team was, however, quick to adapt and delivered a double championship-winning machine.

Displaying absolute dominance, Red Bull won 17 of the 22 races. Max Verstappen, however, wants the 2023 season to be more competitive. Speaking with The Guardian, he said, “I hope it will be tight. It’s always nice to have a fight until the end. But yeah, I’m prepared for more races and for a longer fight hopefully.”

Verstappen thinks other teams have figured the car out now and therefore, the championship fight will be closer next season. Max is not wrong in his assessment as Mercedes have shown signs of a resurgence lately.

He continued, “We know over the winter that we really have to keep pushing and keep trying to find performance, and not only performance: understanding possibly the tires even more, because the tires will change a bit for next year.”

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Max may expect other drivers and teams to come back stronger next year, but Christian Horner does not think red Bull’s golden boy can be beaten. Not even in the same car.

Christian Horner showers high praise on Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen and Red Bull had the perfect partnership in 2022. While the team delivered the quickest car, Verstappen made the most of it with superior driving prowess.

Lauding the Dutchman, Christian Horner told reporters, “I think Max is operating at a level that I’m not sure anybody – with the way he’s driving at the moment – in the same equipment would be able to repeat what he’s done this year.”

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Do you think Max and Red Bull will continue their dominance in 2023? Or will rivals catch up to them and give them a run for their money?