“Kimi Raikkonen, Max Verstappen would not be in F1” – McLaren boss fumes at FIA for snubbing 7-time race winning IndyCar driver

Zak Brown was unhappy at FIA’s decision to not exempt Colton Herta for Superlicense points as they did with Kimi Raikkonen and Max Verstappen.

What do Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen have in common apart from a World Championship title won in the last race of the season? It’s enough SuperLicense points when they both debuted in F1.

The FIA made infamous exceptions in these two cases and instead strengthened the rules in upcoming seasons. And this rule has affected IndyCar driver Colton Herta’s hopes of racing in F1.

Herta was approached by AlphaTauri as a potential replacement for Pierre Gasly. The Frenchman is trying to make a move to Alpine in 2023.

To race in F1, a driver must accumulate 40 points over a period of 3 years by racing in various competitions or testing. But unfortunately, Herta has only 32 to his name and is 8 short of a potential F1 move.

The FIA even declined to make an exception for the Americans. This means AlphaTauri have to move on from Herta who despite his immense speed and talent can’t race in F1.

Zak Brown was present at the 2022 IndyCar series finale at Laguna Seca. And he shared his dissatisfaction regarding Herta being declined a chance to race in F1.

“I think the whole licensing system needs to be reviewed. I get that the rules are what the rules are and that rules shouldn’t be broken But I question whether just because those are the rules that are in place now that those are the correct rules.

“Someone of Colton’s calibre, or Pato’s calibre or even half the IndyCar grid is F1 capable. If someone like Colton who’s won a lot of IndyCar races isn’t eligible for a Superlicence then I think we need to review the system.”

Herta is a part of McLaren’s test driver and has texted the MCL35 in Portimao. AlphaTauri are looking to sign Nyck De Vries as a replacement instead

Also Read: Helmut Marko disappointed as FIA fails to change super license rules for Colton Herta’s F1 debut

How Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikonnen were ineligible to race in F1

Zak Brown was disappointed by FIA’s decision to not consider an exception for Colton Herta. But he was fuming about how FIA considered 2 World Champions to race despite not meeting Superlicense criteria.

Zak Brown said, “If you go back and look, there are a couple of world champions, who wouldn’t have got their Superlicence in today’s environment.”

In 2001, 22-year-old Kimi Raikkonen was promoted to Sauber’s F1 racing seat. Peter Sauber was impressed by his performance at junior levels and decided to give the Finn a shot at F1 after his incredible Testing result.

Kimi had till then raced only 23 races and FIA lodged their concerns. But allowed the Finn to race after Peter Sauber promised them the driver will bring consistent results.

While Max Verstappen got a chance to drive an F1 car before he turned 18. At 17, Max became the youngest driver to drive an F1 car at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix FP1.

Max skipped GP2 and was given a racing seat at Toro Rosso for the 2015 season. Because he tested with the team earlier, he was eligible to drive for Toro Rosso. And in 2016 after Max’s debut, FIA made the rules stricter preventing 18-year-olds from racing in F1.

And looking at both cases, he added, “I don’t think Max Verstappen would have been eligible for a Superlicence. Nor do I think Kimi Raikkonen would have been eligible.

Bown has urged FIA to mend its Superlicense quotas to allow drivers from other leagues to race in F1. But a change like that is less likely.

Also Read: F1 journalist claims Colton Herta move to AlphaTauri isn’t happening