Verstappen impresses: 'He is dealing with that well too'

Verstappen receives compliments

"I think anyway with Max, I don't have orange glasses or orange hat on, but you just clearly see how he is growing. With everything," Albers concludes in De Telegraaf's podcast. "He has grown from the beginning he got into Red Bull. His qualifications have got better and better, that's not normal. We no longer know any better that he can just drive for pole. You can see he has it all together."

Age also plays a role in this according to the F1 analyst, who also regularly joins Viaplay. According to Albers, the drudgery has now worn off with Verstappen. "He is becoming calmer, you can see he is becoming more professional. In terms of politics, Max's statements are all very calm, very neat, correct. But still, sometimes he does say what he thinks," he says. "You do notice that he thinks about it for a while now, he lets it sink in and then he throws it out."

Hardly a day goes by in recent weeks when Verstappen is confronted by the media with a possible departure from Red Bull Racing. So far, the Dutchman has kept his head down and managed to expertly parry all questions from journalists.