Max Verstappen won his sixth consecutive race in the 2023 F1 season in Silverstone and extended his lead at the top of the world championship standings. The British fans, however, who were majorly backing Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton weren’t pleased to see the Red Bull ace dominate. They booed him constantly throughout the course of the weekend, but Verstappen, who is sure that there are English fans backing him, remained unfazed.
Verstappen took pole position but had a surprisingly poor start to the British GP when he lost out on the lead to Lando Norris on turn one. He soon regained P1, and after that, couldn’t be stopped. The home fans didn’t quite like that their heroes couldn’t match the Dutch driver. However, to make things better for them, seven-time world champion Hamilton completed the final podium place by finishing third in Silverstone.
11 wins in a row for the team, what an amazing achievement @redbullracing 🚀 This is an extraordinary job by everyone 👏 #KeepPushing
Thank you Silverstone 🇬🇧 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/JvY7dR54ij
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) July 9, 2023
However, Verstappen’s success wasn’t well received by the fans in the circuit. When the race ended, both Norris and Hamilton got loud cheers from the fans, contrary to Verstappen, who was greeted with a deafening silence. This did not upset the two-time world champion who is adamant that plenty of English F1 fans back him.
‘Quite a few English fans’ surprisingly support Max Verstappen
Speaking to Channel 4 after the race, Verstappen answered questions regarding the constant booing at Silverstone, and whether it affected him. The Red Bull driver insisted that he wasn’t worried about it because he has trust in his English fanbase.
“I think there are quite a few English people who are a fan,” said Verstappen. “I think they are and you would be surprised.”
🗣️ | Max was told that almost all of the 480,000 spectators did not want him to win at the British GP
His reply:
“I think there’s quite a few English people who are a fan [of Max]. I think they are and you would be surprised.”[@Channel4] pic.twitter.com/VHL6o6DYc2
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) July 10, 2023
Admittedly, there were some Verstappen fans visible on the circuit in Silverstone, but even if they were cheering for him, it must have gotten drowned out by the amount of support received by Norris, Hamilton, and his teammate George Russell.
This isn’t an isolated incident in F1, however, because Hamilton often travels to tracks where Verstappen fans take over. There, the 38-year-old is subject to constant booing from spectators.
Lewis Hamilton gets booed at other tracks
There are several tracks on the calendar where Verstappen fans make up the majority of the crowd. Tracks like Zandvoort, Spa-Francorchamps, and Spielberg are regarded as home races for Verstappen, and their fans give a hard time to anyone who decides to challenge their favorite star.
Notably, Hamilton’s rivalry with Verstappen in 2021 has made given him an antagonistic reputation in these parts of the world, and fans remind him of the same, every time he travels back. At times, some people crossed the line by resorting to burning Hamilton merchandise to “show their support” for Verstappen.
The next race of the 2023 season takes place at the Hungaroring, a track where Hamilton has always been strong. However, considering Mercedes’ slump in Silverstone it seems unlikely that the Brit will win the race.
