Max Verstappen is almost unstoppable at the moment, portraying the most dominant phase of his entire motorsport career. After equaling his former Red Bull colleague Sebastian Vettel’s decade-old record in front of his home crowd last weekend, the Dutchman managed to surpass it over the succeeding Italian Grand Prix, becoming the first-ever Formula 1 driver to win 10 races on the trot.
However, Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff publicly admitted that he doesn’t care about Verstappen’s latest history-making feat. What’s more, the Austrian billionaire also reckoned that Verstappen hardly cares about the monumental numbers as well.
Although Verstappen stamped his authority over rivals, including Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, with the help of an incredibly fiery Red Bull challenger, there is no denying that the two-time world champion had to work for his latest victory at Monza. Shockingly, after a series of underwhelming shows, Ferrari found themselves contending for a race victory.
A 10/10 performance today @redbullracing 🏆
To win 10 races in a row, and 15 consecutive races as a team, is unbelievable! 💪 I’m beyond proud to achieve this milestone together 👏
Today we will enjoy this moment and then we will keep pushing for more ☝
#ItalianGP pic.twitter.com/Cj8DPqmxzN
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) September 3, 2023
And, while Red Bull always had the edge throughout the weekend, the Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, were visibly yearning for a victory in front of the home crowd. Hence, the desperation somehow earned Sainz his much-deserving pole position. Unfortunately, the Spaniard had absolutely no chance of keeping Verstappen at bay on Sunday, as he caved in after putting up a tough fight.
Toto Wolff dismisses latest Max Verstappen achievement with a jibe
When asked about Verstappen’s latest feat, Wolff pointed out that Mercedes always had two drivers fighting for the world champion, and hence, achievements of such sorts weren’t practical. Furthermore, the Austrian also admitted that such achievements are irrelevant to him, according to Planet F1.
“Our situation was a little bit different because we had two guys fighting against each other within the team,” Wolff said during a post-race conversation with Sky Sports F1. “I don’t know if he cares about the records. It is not something that would be important for me, those numbers, it is for Wikipedia and nobody reads that anyway.”
Took some time but Toto Wolff finally learned something from Lewis
They didn’t respect your records, you don’t have to either 👍pic.twitter.com/uhYffRd6ct
— Buc Nasty 🏁 (@premystic) September 3, 2023
Overall, Wolff’s latest claim isn’t necessarily true, as Dr. Helmut Marko, right after the race, revealed that the Dutchman was quite tensed about winning the Italian GP and breaking Vettel’s all-time record.
And apart from the early niggles trying to overtake Sainz, Verstappen orchestrated a near-flawless race to win a whopping ten Grands Prix in a row, slotting himself into the record books once again. However, at 25 years old, one can only see this as a start, with more such fantastic feats awaiting the young Dutch lion.