After witnessing the way Max Verstappen is dominating the sport, most of the teams in F1 would go back in time to sign him as their driver. However, Toto Wolff has stated that he had the opportunity to do so but was not sure if he was capable of winning Championships in Formula 1.
In a recent interview with ESPN, Toto Wolff talked about Max Verstappen and how he got the opportunity to sign him for Mercedes.
“Back in the day I think there wasn’t huge hype around Max because Max and Van Amersfoort weren’t winning the championship that year,” Wolff said. “Esteban won in a more competitive car. So the insiders knew that Max probably was in an inferior package in his first year, and the insiders knew there was a very good one coming, but it wasn’t clear that he was that good at that stage.
Do you think Max Verstappen can equal the talent of Ayrton Senna? 🤔#Senna #Verstappen #F1 #Formula1 pic.twitter.com/hYwNbm7bm3
— PlanetF1 (@Planet_F1) September 10, 2023
“You can only say when someone grows in Formula One and matures that he is a true world champion — an outstanding one. Before we had Lewis and then Michael Schumacher and before that [Ayrton] Senna. Who is the next one? Was it clear that Max would step into these shoes? It wasn’t clear back then.”
Toto spoke to Max and Jos Verstappen sometime during 2013 or 2014. At the time Mercedes already had two exceptional drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Both of these drivers competed for the Championship from 2014 to 2016. Hence, there was no room for Max Verstappen as Toto felt that both of his drivers would be with the team for a long period of time. However, after Nico Rosberg left the team in 2016, Max Verstappen had already joined the Red Bull team.
Max Verstappen is already on course to beat Ayrton Senna’s achievements
Ever since Max Verstappen joined Red Bull, he has been winning races. When he came into the sport, he was considered to be an aggressive driver. However, his driving style has matured over the years. While Mercedes was dominating the sport, Red Bull was more focused on developing Max Verstappen as a driver.
In 2020, the Dutch driver was the only competition Mercedes had. There were only a total of 6 races where Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton did not finish on the podium. However, it was clear that the Mercedes car was stronger than the Red Bull.
The next year, Red Bull finally built a car that was equal to the Mercedes. Max Verstappen won the 2021 Championship after overtaking Lewis Hamilton on the last lap of the season. Since then, the Dutch driver has not stopped winning.
Max Verstappen the record breaker 🔥
At age of 25 Max breaks the records of the greatest like Schumi, Senna, Fangio
Max is the only driver on the grid who has won at least one race every year since his RB debut in 2016.
Max is born to race, born to win 🏆#SingaporeGP #MV1 #1 pic.twitter.com/3sUkBTHDBP— Marc1️⃣3️⃣3️⃣🔟 (@433_marc) September 9, 2023
In 2022, he broke the record for most race wins in a season with 15. The record was previously held by Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher with 13 wins. In the 2023 season, there are still another 8 races to go and Max Verstappen already has 12 wins. He has already broken the record for most consecutive wins.
Ayrton Senna had 41 Grand Prix victories. This year, he surpassed the record already. After the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, he has 47 race wins. Verstappen will also match the number of Championships with Senna after winning it this year.
Will Max Verstappen be able to beat Michael Schuamcher’s records? Post your answers in the comment section below.