Horner on who has been the best teammate to Verstappen: "Hardest job in F1"
F1 News
Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner believes that the pressure of being Max Verstappen's teammate makes it "the hardest job in F1". The Dutchman earned his fourth consecutive drivers' world championship title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, this time earning the title when his Red Bull may not have been the most dominant car throughout the season.
It has not been an easy season for Verstappen and Red Bull this year, with the RB20 struggling mightily at many races throughout the season with consistency and balance. However, thanks to the brilliance of the 27-year-old, he has been able to put in performances that elevated the car's speed, keeping him in touching distance of championship rival Lando Norris when it seemed impossible.
Drives like that have been seen many times from Verstappen, highlighted with his first win in F1 at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, his first-ever race from Red Bull. That consistency and talent have made it almost impossible for his teammates alongside him to keep up, resulting in many changes alongside the Dutchman. Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Sergio Perez have all driven alongside Verstappen at the Austrian team, with none of them ever able to challenge in the championship standings.
Verstappen has "precision" that "you don't see very often"
After another win was registered at the Qatar Grand Prix for Verstappen, team boss Horner was asked if anyone could handle the pressure of being teammates alongside the Dutchman: "That's a very good question. Being Max Verstappen's teammate is probably the hardest job in Formula One. That would apply for any of the drivers on the grid, I believe."
The Brit was then asked who has been the best to race alongside the 27-year-old, but he did not give a clear answer, only continuing with praise towards Verstappen: "Max has evolved so much. If you compare Max when he drove with Daniel back in 2018, he's evolved a lot since then as well. He's so complete. Today, just have a look at the lap chart, and I was keeping an eye on his middle sector in particular, because that's where you wanted to try and get the DRS gap, and he is within the tenth to half a tenth every lap. That precision is something you don't see very often."
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