Verstappen praised as "not all drivers possess these four qualities"

Jan Lammers was once again reminded of how special Max Verstappen is after he watched his fellow Dutchman win the Japanese Grand Prix.

Despite having the slower car between the two teams, Verstappen was still able to win the Japanese GP and hold the top spot above the McLaren drivers on the podium. One of the key factors of Verstappen's win is his clear communication with his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase. Lammers stated in his column in De Telegraaf that the collaboration is 'incredibly productive'.

“I think many people have no idea how many options there are in motorsport, especially in Formula 1, to fix something. There are countless ways to solve a problem, but only one is optimal. Verstappen and Lambiase often succeed in moving in the right direction together,” the former Formula 1 driver stated in his analysis.

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Lammers praises Verstappen as an athlete

Lammers also referred to Verstappen as 'the ultimate performing top athlete'. He sees him as someone who manages to extract the maximum performance everywhere. He said,  “This also requires very smooth communication with the people around you. As a Formula 1 driver, you have to get the most out of yourself, the situation, the equipment, and also the people around you. Not all drivers possess these four qualities,” Lammers said.

In Lammers' view, there are drivers who may observe something but lack the ability to convey it. “Or drivers who don't extract the maximum from a certain situation on the track. Max proves time and time again that he possesses those four qualities.”

This article was written in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen.