Jos Verstappen says he can definitely outperform current F1 Champion Max Verstappen if he had the goal or training to do so.
Max Verstappen became the first Dutch national to win an F1 race. He claimed his first race win in the 2016 Spanish GP. Max has gone on to win 31 F1 races and the 2021 World Championship.
But he isn’t the first Dutchman to claim an F1 podium. That honour goes to his father Jos Verstappen. Jos claimed a P3 in 1994 Hungarian GP while he was driving a Benneton.
Verstappen senior was just like his son during his racing days. He was known for his aggressive and attacking driving style and raw pace.
Max would have inherited Jos’s attitude towards racing from his dad. But just like his son, Jos is pretty competitive and claims he can give his son a tough fight in equal machinery.
In an interview, David Coulthard asked Jos how it feels seeing his son set trailblazing lap times. And Jos’s answer was, “It’s frustrating. I know I can really do a better job than I do know.”
The 50-year-old claims he can really challenge Max if he could, He adds, “It has to do with training. I don’t have a goal. The other goal is to come close to him. But that’s fine because he is your son. ”
He adds, “But when I do have a goal and I am really fit, I think I can find another half a second. Probably now I am more than half a second away from him.”
Show you how seriously the Verstappen’s take racing and its competitive element!
Also Read: Jos Verstappen does not understand his son Max’s radio messages with Red Bull during a raceday
Jos does not understands Max Verstappen’s braking technique
Unlike Max Verstappen, Jos was not a prodigy during his time. He joined in an era dominated by Michael Schumacher, Mika Hakkinen, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and others.
Jos never got to drive a lot of competitive cars. But when he did, he even impressed a few critics with his pace. This was a win in itself, especially while driving beside Michael Schumacher who was his teammate while he was driving for Bennetorn in 1994.
Max claims his father hasn’t lost his mojo yet. The father-son duo still do Karting together and Max claimed, “He is not bad in fast corners. It’s just the low-speed ones.”
Watching Mick Schumacher and Max Verstappen battle each other during #SilverstoneGP reminded me of this clip where Michael Schumacher and Jos Verstappen were asked what would they do if their kids wanted to get into Formula 1 pic.twitter.com/6Tbsu0XoMw
— Alee (@comrade_pepsi) July 3, 2022
But Jos feels the times have changed since he drove in F1. Drivers back then were just asked to drive fast. While now they have to prove their mantle from simulators to different levels of racing and have so much technical data about their racing.
He said he also does not understand how to race in new cars. “It’s the way they brake. I cannot figure it out. I am pushing the pedal way too hard and I cannot do what he does.”
Max is well known for his late braking manoeuvres. Jos too appreciates it saying, “He presses the pedal less harder and way later. I cannot understand how!”
Also Read: Jos Verstappen admits his approach towards his son was harsh; says he needed it
