Tost agrees with Verstappen: 'Mercedes are far from beaten'

His former team boss Franz Tost thinks this is a wise choice. "He should think as little as possible about the championship. That only distracts. Focus only on the next race and make sure you perform optimally. That's my advice," Tost told the Dutch news website NOS in an interview.

Tost continues: "Max keeps saying that we should not underestimate Mercedes. He is absolutely right. It is a very strong team. They have won seven titles in a row for a reason and are still far from being beaten." Even though Mercedes is focusing on the car of 2022, there will still be upgrades to the car. So the battle is certainly not over yet.

Specific knowledge needed in F1

Because of the title fight, Verstappen is compared to Hamilton a lot. According to the team boss of Scuderia AlphaTauri, the difference between the 17-year-old and 23-year-old Verstappen is in experience.

"Max has six Formula One seasons behind him. That counts heavily. I always say that drivers need three years to fully understand an F1 car. You have to understand everything first before you can really start working on yourself to become an even better driver."

"From the fourth season, you can focus on the technology, the aerodynamics and the set-up of the car. What happens during the races, what are the weaknesses of the competition? Max has that knowledge in his pocket now and that is worth its weight in gold," Tost said.