2009 F1 champion Jenson Button has admitted that he will be “more fearful” to face Max Verstappen as compared to his former McLaren teammate Lewis Hamilton. Since Button partnered with Hamilton between 2010 and 2012 at the Woking-based outfit, he knows a thing or two about the 38-year-old.
While speaking about the same in an interview with Sky Sports back in September, Button said, “I think Lewis has had some very tough team-mates. He’s had World Champions as team-mates, whereas Max hasn’t. But for me, I would be more fearful going up against Max in the same car – and I think it is because the car is designed around his style, or he can drive a car that Adrian Newey gives him.”
Button’s comment came amidst the ongoing controversy stirred up by Hamilton. The Mercedes driver claimed that he has had tougher teammates than Verstappen has ever had in his F1 career.
Since Button himself was one of Hamilton’s teammates, he did validate the 38-year-old’s remarks. Other than Button, Hamilton has also had two-time world champion Fernando Alonso as his teammate. That’s not it, as Hamilton has also been teammates with 2016 F1 champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes.
On the contrary, none of Verstappen’s teammates have won a world championship. The only driver who has ever beaten the Dutchman in a full season in the same machinery is eight-time Grand Prix winner Daniel Ricciardo.
How did Red Bull respond to Lewis Hamilton’s criticism of Max Verstappen?
Although Christian Horner agreed with Lewis Hamilton’s assessment, he steered the conversation in a different direction. He dubbed the rest of the grid to be Max Verstappen’s actual competition.
Verstappen, on the other hand, said his aim over a race weekend was to perform to the best of his ability in tandem with his team. He then also slammed Hamilton for being just ‘jealous’.
However, it is pertinent to note that Jenson Button also claimed that Red Bull perhaps designs their cars to Verstappen’s liking. Sergio Perez too confirmed the same in an interview with Sky Sports in August.
The Mexican said, “The last few races, I’ve been like a step or two behind and always thinking consciously [about] how I have to drive the car. Sometimes, with how the car has been developed, it doesn’t really suit me as much. So I have to work harder for it.”
Moreover, Verstappen’s former teammate, Alex Albon, has also shared similar feedback in the past. Albon criticized Red Bull for building their car around their “lead driver” who was Verstappen. The Thai driver also said that the three-time champion had “a very distinct style of driving” which was difficult for a lot of drivers to adapt to.
Verstappen has a driving style that allows for an enhanced oversteer to attack corners aggressively. Incidentally, all the three cars, he has won championships in, had setups favorable for a twitchy rear end, just as he likes.
That can be intimidating for a driver that follows a different philosophy. Moreover, for a driver like Perez who has a polar opposite driving style that leans more towards understeer, adapting can become a difficult and time-consuming task.
