Ever since he became a world champion in 2021, Max Verstappen has not looked back. He defended his title in 2022 and is certain to become a three-time world champ at the Qatar GP next weekend. Given his dominant career arc, especially over the last few years, many consider Verstappen to be the best in the world. However, RacingNews 365 reports that IndyCar driver Agustin Canapino believes “Alien” Verstappen is not the best driver out there.
Despite looking like a fairly straightforward race, the IndyCar series is a hard race to master. The spec nature of cars makes the sport hard to dominate as the cars are fairly matched, meaning it is mostly about a driver’s skill behind the steering wheel. Meanwhile, F1 is still relatively uneven, with regulations often favoring one team over others. Given the same, Canapino ranks a fellow IndyCar racer above Verstappen as the best in the world.
Max Verstappen is not the best driver in the world- Agustin Canapino
The vast diversity in the world of motorsports has often given way to arguments over which driver is the undisputed best in the world. For the last two years, Verstappen’s name has often stood atop the podium but it often faced a strong challenge from IndyCar driver Alex Palou. In the latest development over the same, RacingNews 365 quotes Canapino as favoring Palou over Verstappen in the discussion despite addressing the latter as an “alien.”
“In my opinion, Palou is more complete than Verstappen. What Palou does in IndyCar for me is really like being an extraterrestrial, but it is a very subjective opinion. Verstappen is another alien too. Don’t let Verstappen’s followers criticize me because I have Verstappen in limbo too but, for me, the fact of racing on ovals makes IndyCar drivers different because the oval is the absolute extreme and F1 doesn’t have that.”
Driving for Chip Ganassi Racing, Palou secured his second IndyCar title on the back of five wins this season. Of the five wins, three came back-to-back, which is no easy feat in the sport. Verstappen, too, has had an incredible run of form, going ten races undefeated before things went south in Singapore. As such, it is hard to point out the better driver, but not for Canapino.
Alex Palou and the McLaren F1 saga
McLaren brought Palou on board from Chip Ganassi following the 2023 season, in hopes of bolstering their IndyCar lineup while also allowing him to race in F1. Zak Brown even paid the legal fees for the proceedings, but the Spaniard snubbed McLaren at the last moment. Following the same, Brown filed a lawsuit against the driver, seeking $20 to $30 million in reputational damages. The McLaren CEO even issued a statement where he said the IndyCar driver had “no intentions” of joining McLaren ever.
🚨🇯🇵 Surprise 2024 #F1 (reserve) driver news
After losing Alex Palou from its roster, McLaren has signed Le Mans/WEC winning Toyota star + long-time Super Formula frontrunner Ryo Hirakawa as a reserve/development driver
(& he’s got a superlience) pic.twitter.com/plSzl5Prtt
— The Race (@wearetherace) September 22, 2023
Earlier in September, Palou came forth to tell his side of the story as he claimed “there was no real opportunity in F1.” Revealing his plans for the 2024 season, Palou claimed he was happy to continue racing for Chip Ganassi. However, speaking of a potential opportunity to drive in F1 without McLaren, the Spaniard says it will come down to whether or not his age allows him to compete in the sport if an opportunity presents itself.
