“Is he already Lewis on Sunday? No”- Mark Webber on Max Verstappen’s progress in Formula 1 this season but claims he still has a lot to learn.
Max Verstappen was the only driver this season who posed any real challenge to the Mercedes duo in 2020. Moreover, he is also being seen as the next Drivers’ Championship winner, once Lewis Hamilton decides to take retirement and ends his streak.
Despite, Verstappen is the only person seen behind, his predecessor at Red Bull Mark Webber in an interview to Formule 1 opined that Verstappen has still a lot to learn before we call him at par with the Briton.
Max has done a very, very, very good job.” In addition, Verstappen is still developing strongly, Webber believes. “He is in the final phase of fine-tuning his craftsmanship, if I may put it that way. ”
“Is he already Lewis Hamilton on Saturday, in that he is equal to Lewis in qualifications? Yes. Is he already Lewis on Sunday? No, he is not. But that’s normal, ”Webber argues.
“You don’t win five world titles in your first five years in Formula 1. Nobody did.” It is a matter of gaining experience, building up a routine and going through the usual rites of passage.
Such as dealing with a situation “where he has a dominant car and can decide a championship early on, or driving alone in the front for two hours week-after-week.”
Can he beat complacency?
Webber further went onto say that the biggest hurdle Hamilton crossed was the complacency a car like Mercedes brought, which the 36-year-old driver combated efficiently.
“Not many drivers get into such a situation: that you can dominate for a while and have the peace and regularity to do that without becoming complacent. That is experience. He must learn that. He and Charles Leclerc, by the way. They are the hotshots to come. ”
