Red Bull Contentpool
F1 News
Verstappen thinks it should be different: 'Women should race against men'
- Sandy van Wijngaarden
F1 has many iniciatives to give more opportunities to women in motorsport. There is also a female-only series, F1 Academy that already completed its first two seasons. While opinions differ about that approach, Max Verstappen believes it would be better if women got to compete against men, similarly to other feeder series.
Since the beginning of the 2024 season, Formula 1 teams have become more involved in the F1 Academy series, providing cars and drivers for the female category. In addition, the class now runs on the same weekends as F1 as a supporting class.
While it gives women a chance to show what they can do, many also criticise the racing class. Speaking to Sportskeeda, Max Verstappen expresses his views on women in Formula 1. According to the Dutchman, it is difficult for women to get into F1, as the percentage who get there is very small.
Verstappen shares his views on how women can get into F1
According to Verstappen, it is all about investing in training programmes. Therefore, there cannot be a certain time limit put on by when women will arrive to F1 either. A key point for the four-time world champion in this training is that women will continue to race against men.
"I believe personally that they have to race anyone, not just females. If you want a fair comparison, they need to race against males, because that's what they will do in F1 as well." He added: "If you want to achieve the top, you need to raise the top."
This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sárközi
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels!