Ecclestone: "Too bad Verstappen doesn't provide so much entertainment anymore"
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Bernie Ecclestone already announced last week that he would choose Max Verstappen 'as the first driver in his Formula 1 team', but the praise isn't over yet. The former owner of Formula 1 sees the Red Bull Racing driver as an absolute world champion and calls it a graying pity that the 22-year-old talent is no longer as attractive as during his debut races.
"I first met Max when he didn't even have his first whiskers", laughs Ecclestone in an interview with Sport1. With the German medium, Ecclestone says he immediately saw that the Dutch had 'something special'. He regrets that Verstappen isn't as open-minded anymore as he was in his first years in the royal class of motorsport. "Unfortunately Max has grown up and doesn't provide so much entertainment anymore," he winkles.
Verstappen and Leclerc world champion
The Formula 1 career of Verstappen is still very young and for that reason Ecclestone also thinks that a world title for the 22 year old driver cannot be postponed. "He will definitely win the world championship one day, just like Charles Leclerc," Ecclestone adds.
The 89-year-old billionaire also discusses the secret agreement between the FIA and Ferrari about the Italian engine used in 2019. The British can't believe that the international motorsport federation is behaving in this way. Moreover, Ecclestone seems to be rushing to Liberty Media. "I would never have allowed that. What's this? Either someone's cheating, or they're not. he FIA statement sounded like an admission of guilt from Ferrari. Why else would they have been called to the mat in the first place?"
Ecclestone would sue the FIA
Mercedes soon announced its disagreement with the plans of Ferrari and the FIA not to make it public. However, the world champion dropped out a few weeks ago after a political decision. "The other teams must now stand firm and sue the FIA if necessary. Millions of dollars in prize money are at stake. When McLaren was involved in the espionage scandal in 2007, I didn't even let it go to court. We then disqualified McLaren and fined them $100 million. The other teams received more prize money and everything was worked out transparently," he concludes.