Verstappen gets support from Coulthard: 'He doesn't mince words'

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Coulthard over Verstappen's board radios
5 August at 12:00
Last update 5 August at 12:44
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  • Estéban den Toom

There has been much discussion in Formula 1 about Max Verstappen's team radios messages to his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, also known as GP. Some think the Red Bull driver is too rude, and others understand Verstappen all too well. David Coulthard is clearly in the latter group. Speaking to Motorsport.com, the former Red Bull driver gave his opinion on the world championship leader's radio messages.

After the Hungarian Grand Prix, it was still mostly about Red Bull and Verstappen's board radios. "No mate, don't give me that bulls*** now. You guys gave me this f***ing strategy, OK? I'm trying to rescue what's left," shouted the Dutchman during the race at the Hungaroring.

Coulthard over Verstappen's board radios

Coulthard explained that no one knows more about what to do with the car than Verstappen himself. "He is always very frank and straightforward. He doesn't mince words. Maybe some people don't always like that, but Formula 1 is not about nice talk. There has to be a certain level. You have to be able to express your opinion clearly," the Formula 1 analyst explained.

According to Coulthard, there is also a difference between the engineer and the driver during the race. "The engineer can still hear it all fairly calmly, but Max has to deal with the noise and, of course, everything that happens on the track. If we had this conversation in such a setting, it would also sound very different. Because of that, you always have to keep the context in mind," he concluded.

This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sarkozi