When David Croft screamed on the radio in Abu Dhabi in 2021, “Max Verstappen, for the first time ever, is champion of the world,” the world witnessed the rise of a new conqueror. However, long before he defeated Lewis Hamilton to take the ultimate win, Martin Brundle had already made a fascinating prediction about the two-time world champion.
Over seven years back from now, and exactly six years before the 25-year-old picked up his first-ever championship, F1 expert Brundle made a defining statement about Verstappen in Brazil.
“and that is why max verstappen *will* become world champion in formula 1” pic.twitter.com/N9JuUmJoWp
— jen ³³ ₈ 🇿🇦 (@soy33lago) April 15, 2023
Seeing the sheer driving talent, the former driver declared, “And that is Why Max Verstappen will become world champion.” He also reasoned his statement with, “That kind of car control and confidence and belief at 18 years old!”
This was back in the 2015 Brazilian Grand Prix. The race that Nico Rosberg won against Hamilton as the Mercedes duo were having the title battles between them. Amid all this, there was a rise of a new gladiator in the name of Max Verstappen.
Verstappen show in 2015 Brazil GP
It was Round 18 of the 2015 F1 season. While Rosberg and Hamilton were in a title battle with their unbeatable Mercedes, the Dutchman was yet to make it to Red Bull. Driving for Toro Rosso, he was seen as an exceptional talent.
As the race weekend went underway, the Dutch driver had a brilliant qualifying with a mid-segment Toro Rosso. Finishing the Q3 in P10, Verstappen was promoted to P9 due to another driver’s grid penalty.
In the race, Verstappen showcased his brilliance on track yet again after Belgium. Known for his iconic move to around the outside or dive down the inside, the then Toro Rosso star had already made a name for himself and moved up to places. After a courageous battle in that mid-segment car, the two-time world champion still managed to finish the race in P10 and on points.
After seeing the moves by Max Verstappen, Brundle already hailed him as the future world champion. At the same time, Eddie Jordan hijacked the pilot from the Dutch media to talk to the BBC. That year, he also fetched his first ever “Rookie of the Year,” “Personality of the Year,” and “Action of the Year.” awards.
Verstappen always has been a special talent
Verstappen joined the sport as the youngest-ever driver. He was just 17 years and 166 days old when he debuted for Toro Rosso. And a few days later, he picked up his first-ever championship points when he was just 17 years and 180 days.
After a year of a fantastic show, the Dutch pilot was taken to Red Bull to replace Daniil Kvyat. There, Verstappen picked up his first-ever GP win right on his debut day with the Milton-Keynes-based team.
With this, he replaced Sebastian Vettel as the youngest-ever GP winner in 18 years and 228 days. Later on, in 2021, he defeated the seven-time world champion Hamilton to take himself on the list as the fourth-youngest driver to win an F1 world championship.
