Verstappen on Russell's option as teammate: "Doesn't matter to me"
Helmut Marko thinks too George Russell will impress again in 2021. The Red Bull Racing advisor has said he will look into the possibility of bringing the young Briton in if Mercedes chooses Valtteri Bottas again. Max Verstappen would have no problem with that, although the current number two in the World Championship is also pleased with the performance of Sergio Perez.
When Verstappen spoke to Channel 4 in an interview about what he would think if Russell joined Red Bull next season, he replied, "For me it doesn't matter who my teammate is. I always believe in myself and I'm confident that I can always do a job, so for me it doesn't matter who they put next to me."
The 23-year-old Dutchman continued his story with the British medium: "It's good to have a challenge, but I'm also very happy with Checo at the moment. He is doing a great job. In the second race in Austria he was very unfortunate of course. He has also shown in the races before that he is a great addition to the team. It's important to have both cars in the points," he explained.
Teamwork at Red Bull
The collaboration with his current teammate Perez is good and according to the fifteen-time Grand Prix winner, that is also a requirement if the team is to beat Mercedes in both world championships. "I believe it is important for a team to work fully together, on both sides. I don't actually call it sides, because we don't have that at Red Bull," Verstappen said.
People...just the fact that Lewis backs Bottas ( and never mentioned wanting George as his teammate) and Merc not signing George till now says a lot. It a case of 'they want him but, just not yet'. However, they are also afraid George might sign for another good team if they don't. And they don't want that either. Because then they don't have their future covered. It's a PICKLE I say....a real PICKLE.
Russel would do better to stay away from RBR as their 2nd seat is always available.......
Once again, the English in this article is truly poor. I don not want to bash anyone, but please. News writers need to uphold a certain standard, eventho its just a website. Read the article yourself, before clicking submit, it will help a lot. OT: Russell wont go to Red Bull. Marko is just throwing oil on fire here. If RB choses to replace Perez, they will go all in for Alonso.
Hamilton may welcome competition but welcome team orders more. If I was Russell l would consider it a no brainer and definitely make the move to red bull.
Good point Dave. No teamorders anymore for extra points WDC. Just drive !
Idiotic. Perez hads had multiple orders not to hold Ver up, to get out of his way. VER likes a whipping boy as a team mate, soone that doesn't challenge him. He's won nothing.
Thank you for your insights. Worth nothing. The speed gap between VER and PER is too big to make a difference. As far as I could see, it was totally different between HAM and BOT at Silverstone. Don’t make such a fool of yourself. Even the Wolve called BOT the perfect wingman. PER first has to improve his performance to come at teamorder level.
Thank you for your answer Paul. You are excellent with your insights of course and I am an idiot. Not. The point is not that HAM let BOT through because of generosity, or giving BOT some credits and pay back, HAM didn’t have a chance in any case to be better than P4. He was ‘paying back’ without wallet. So who is the idiot here? That’s one thing. The other thing is that MER has got an excellent car where RBR is near to competitive if you are an excellent driver. Only VER is. BOT as well as PER aren’t. In case of BOT, driving so many years in an excellent car is not the same as PER driving about 8 GP’s in a near to competitive car, like PER did, so any comparison is worthless. So, before calling me an idiot, do your homework, take off you diapers and rinse your mouth. Otherwise I will deminisize every single word from you in this blog.
That's my fucking point you idiot! Bottas wasn't Hamiltons wing man, Hamilton was Bottas's wing man lmao
Hahahahahahaha If BOT did not pass HAM, both had been passed by NOR, now HAM could hold up NOR to secure at least P2 for MER. Of course there are different strategies, but do your homework.
Lets remember now, team sport, and Hamilton let Bottas through in Austria, or did you conventiently forget that..... Keep up at the back.
Hahahahahahahahahahaha Bottas was on a different strategy. Hamilton could only win out of the two of them and Mercedes made that call. Perez is a lacky. At least Bottas can win on merit. No chance can Perez, he's just not good enough, just how VER likes his team mates.
What you're actually saying it what I have said; he's not good enough, he's not allowed to challenge VER, where Bottas is....
Dose not matter who they put next to Verstappen he will destroy them,
George has won the GP3 championship and FIA Formula 2 championship what has the son of a woman beater max done ??? George would whoop max hard, you saw how max behaved when danny ric got that pole and celebrated max acted like a child spitting his dummy out like it was wrong for danny ric to get "his" pole and deny him youngest driver pole . And then causing a collision with danny ric at baku because he knew he was faster. Max would not be able to handle russells speed or maturity he would buckle and cry to marko and horner spice.
I think Verstappen want Chico because he knows Russell is too good and will make Max look slow and become number 1 Red Bull driver.
Please Read the article again. He said he doesn't care. He said that before. Also lately he said that Perez is too far behind to make good strategic choices. Doesn't sound as he is really happy with him
Hamilton has said he doesn't care, but that, in his opinion, Bot has worked well as a team mate. I can assure you, suggesting Russell would beat Hamilont is a bit deranged; Russell has only just scored his forst point, and even then, Latifi finished in front of him. When Russell actually does anything, maybe then you should open the big bazoo.
Did i mention Hamilton in my comment? i this case i only know what Verstappen said.
If that’s the case than so be it. Real F1 fans from today want to see real competition. It is the old school ‘real’ F1 fans with ‘years of experience’ who tell everyone how the F1 works. Uhhhuh.
So let me get this straight. VER says he likes Perez as a team mate (as he doesn't challenge him). That's legit. Hamilton says he likes BOT as a team mate and he's running from Russell, someone who has won nothing in F1. So in one breath you support VER for saying the same thing you're chastising Hamilton for. Can you not genuinely see how dumb that is? You're not even masking the fact you're holding both drivers to separate standards.
Its well publicised Hamilton's insistence for Bottas to remain for obvious reasons. Russell wont sign under the condition as another yes man for setting up Hamilton wins and maintaining the Mercedes marketing formula. Hamilton won't cope with the competition Russell will provide.
HAM said that it's great to work with straightforward BOT, no mind games etc, VER is saying the same thing about PER.
I would rather have russell in the merc and max in that red bull. Then we can actually see no team orders between the two and the fight would really be a fight.
Russell is not going to RBR.... period! It's not even abt Max... the two bosses are the problem... Max has them eating on his palm n Jos'... Checo is busting his chops... but they're already complimenting another new guy with possiblity.... just no respect for their #2's....
Lmfao Max would embarrass Russell. But he'll def battle with Lewis!
It would be great to see Russell in Mercedes, fighting with Hamilton without team orders, but I'm afraid it's not going to happen.
To say it in my good friend Mandela’s words: it would be a refreshing surprise ?
Like Max isn't the golden boy who benefitsd from team orders all day long ffs. Wind your neck in....
My forecast is that as long as HAM is in the team, RUS will not…or the latter will get strict teamorders before signing the contract. HAM is not willing to have a kind of open competition with RUS, he is afraid that he can’t handle. And probably he’s right.
I disagree with your opinion. Lewis has always welcomed competition as it pushes him to dig deeper. RB on the other hand - I do fear how Max would handle such competition within a team. This I would love to see as Lewis has nothing to prove IMO.
We have seen how MAX handled with RIC and we have seen how HAM handled with ROS and BOT. It is your opinion and I respect that.
Yeah he welcomed the fight with max, but then he started losing.
As a rookie, Hamilton handled two-time reigning champion Fernando Alonzo at McLaren and matched him in both number of race wins and points, missing the championship title to Kimi Raikkonen by only 1 point. But as seven-time world champion with more wins, more podiums, more points and more poles than any other driver in F1 history, he is afraid that he can’t handle a kid who’s only just scored his first points in F1. What do some of you gain by trying to disrespect Hamilton? Just how does it make your life better? It’s totally insane.
If is normal for established championed to be unsettled in later years by newcomers. As a rookie you are doing the chasing, then you are the established great, then as you lose your edge another Comes snapping at your heels. Prost when Senna arrived, Senna when Schumacher arrived and he was in the Workings but it was a dog. Many believe it was a desperate move to use the very bit of track he had warned Hill about. Schumacher in 95 and 6 when Alonso was the rising star, Alonso rattled by Hamilton when he expects an unclaimed run to his third title, Vettel when Ricardo took the team by storm, etc etc. However Lewis arms to shows more maturity than some so may be asked to slip into the role of else statesman and mentor, rather than threatened top dog
Bullshit. You don't know LH, his career since his go karting early days and his mindset. Russell hasn't proved anything yet. It doesn't kill to be ridiculous but it makes you look pathetic.
I have very much respect for HAM, he is undeniable one of the greatest drivers ever. But why talking about disrespect when just giving an opinion? Maybe you listened too much to HAM using the word respect in an incorrect way.. It gives confusion.
As a matter of fact, Hamilton is very scared. You say hes a sever time WC, in reality he beat 1 person every year, to claim the Mercedes WC, The Merc car was 2 seconds per lap quicker than anything else on full power. They turned the engine down by 15 percent and when things got close, they got full power to win. Its scary that people are dumb enough to call him.the best ever. He is afraid to fall of his pedastool.
How do you know that? HAM has had 3 DWC as teamates and the last biggest teamates' competion has been at Merc, ie, HAM and ROS. When ROS retired they could have taken Werhlien, who was probably THEN comparable to the Albon"s and Gasly's in terms of experience, but no, they spent big to get BOT who was considered much better. Your belief is baseless. And VER is saying the same thing on PER as HAM has been saying on BOT
ROS was so fed up with the struggle against the team’s rules that he retired from one moment to another…good example. I am just forecasting that MER is afraid to put RUS besides HAM, anyone knows he is much better than BOT and that HAM wants to be in the spotlights whatever it costs. We’ll see what happens.
I never heard ROS complaining about team preferences, even after he left F1, what I heard though, is the amount of effort it took him to compete with HAM which was not only affecting him, but his family including his little girl. So no need to make up stories to back up your OPINION, that Lewis doesn't want George.
So it's all made up in your head, I guessed right. And saying everybody knows is just fooling yourself, only because of your hate
In fact he was not complaining, but everyone knows that the Wolve had to make some clear rules to avoid crashes between the two MER at that time. And is someone’s complaining the only reason that something is there? Some people don’t complain.
I didn't remember ROS complaining about rules neither, you might wish to back that up if it is not all made up in your head.
You are right. The word preferences should have been rules, than it’s less suggestive. Doesn’t make my opinion different according to the combination HAM/RUS.
It's well known that ROS started politicking inside the team to destabilise Hamilton, and he says himself, it took so much out of him, that he retired as he couldn't do it again. Rosberg's the bad egg here, not Hamilton.
Wow amazing so you actually worked close with LH, maybe your an ex manager girlfriend or mechanic. Thanks for imparting such great info to us humble supporters. Thank you thank you lmfao
Just utter bollocks; you're talking about a driver who has had 3 WDC as team mates, has never asked for team orders (however Alonso did) and is happy to race anyone fairly.
Everybody knows ALO left McLaren because he was not given N1 status
However, VER is a defacto team lead so whoever goes in there will ever have the chance to shine, they will always be number 2, so I think your answer is quite ironic. Perez almost moves off the track to let him by.
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