Max Verstappen regrets his excessive frankness – While he is one of the youngest drivers on the circuit, Max Verstappen is also one of the most extroverted, especially in the press.

The Dutchman sometimes regrets his ‘big mouth’.

One particular occasion this year, Max Verstappen beat Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and finished third on the podium at Austin. The Dutch driver subsequently suggested that possible cheating had occurred with Ferrari, saying that the crackdown by the FIA’s technical directive seemed to prove that the Ferrari team had cheated with illegal engines.

“He can’t think for a moment about being with us in the future” said Ferrari’s executive director, Louis Camilleri, at Ferrari’s Christmas dinner.

This is of course just one example of Max’s willingness to say what he thinks during interviews.

At just 22 years old, Max Verstappen had an excellent season with the Red Bull team, finishing third ahead of the two Ferraris. But the Dutchman is regularly controversial for his often sincere but uncompromising words. Max Verstappen, who has just finished his fifth season in F1, regretted his excessive honesty in the press.

“I’m probably too frank and direct.” admits Max.

“I’m probably too frank and direct, a big mouth. I’m not a robot outside the car, and I’m happy about that. That’s how I was raised. Sometimes it can work against me, but I see the good side,” Max Verstappen said in remarks published by Autocar recently.

Another occasion of his ‘big mouth’ was when he remarked that Lewis Hamilton wasn’t as good as everyone seemed to think he was. And hinted that the dominant Mercedes team had made it appear that Hamilton was exceptional. 

Again in Autocar, the Dutchman backpedals on his previous comments saying “I didn’t say Hamilton wasn’t special”.

“Everybody has their own style, and I didn’t say that Lewis is nothing special. He’s definitely one of the best drivers ever in Formula 1,” he told Autocar.

“But, like I said before, you are very dependent on your car, so for example if Fernando [Alonso] was in that car, he also would have won championships.

“Sometimes, you’re lucky in a way, because you join a team and then suddenly they become so dominant, and you win your championships.

“But sometimes, like unfortunately with Fernando, you go to teams at the wrong time and you don’t win, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t a good driver. With Fernando, I feel he is one of the best also.” concludes Verstappen.