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Will Verstappen go for Schumacher and Hamilton's ultimate record? Max responds!
- Nicole Mulder
Max Verstappen hardly cares about records, but thinks it would be great to break the record of having the most F1 world drivers' titles, currently held by Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton. Still, the Dutchman believes that's not the most important thing.
Verstappen over record Schumacher and Hamilton
Being just 27 years old, Verstappen already has four world titles to his name. As a result, the Dutchman has plenty of time to achieve an eight title in the competition, even as he made it clear he does not want to stay for too long in F1. When asked about breaking the record currently held by Schumacher and Hamilton, the Red Bull driver answered: "[Would be] amazing, [but] it’s not really necessary."
"I know I can’t do it forever. I love racing, competing at the highest level with so many incredible drivers but there will be a day when I want to relax a bit more. You only live once. When you’re at the end of your 30s, early 40s, your body is naturally declining a bit. Of course I can spend that in F1, but I also want to do other stuff. I want to maximise my lifetime on this planet," the defending champion continued.
For Verstappen, there is more than F1
"There are so many more things I want to do in life, have a bit of fun and catch up with my family. Nowadays, sometimes my mum or dad calls me, and I’m busy, so I say I'll call them back later – but I also know there’ll be a day when they are not calling me anymore because they won’t be here," Verstappen explained.
"These moments make me realise it’s not all about F1. I want to spend time with them, because from when I was four years old, all of our lives – my family’s life – has been dedicated to me and success and trying to get to F1. At one point, that’s enough – and you have to give back and spend more time with them," the four-time world champion continued.
"At the end of the day, that’s way more important than all the success here. It’s great, I love it, I love to be competitive I love to win championships, I love to win races but at one point, family comes first because people get older – and you really have to savour those moments," Verstappen added. Still, he thinks he is a good place at the moment. "For now, I’m very happy with what I’m doing. I’ll try and do it for as long as I can, that I enjoy it and I feel like it’s worth it as well," the driver concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sárközi
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