Max Verstappen “Couldn’t Keep up With the Speed” When He Took Out an F1 Car for the First Time

Max Verstappen has reflected on the struggles he had when he first jumped into an F1 car. He has revealed that he could not keep up with the sheer speed when he first drove the single-seater at the age of 16.

While the Dutchman made his full F1 debut with Toro Rosso back in 2015 at the age of 17 at the Australian Grand Prix, he did take part in three FP1 sessions in 2014. Speaking of how he struggled in them, he told host Tom Clarkson in a recent interview for Pirelli,

“I couldn’t keep up with the speed because I have never experienced anything like that. It’s not like in a road car, when you go from first to second, that kind of acceleration. It’s like non-stop in an F1 car initially, and then your body gets used to it more and more. But in the beginning, it was quite a shock“.

It was harder for Verstappen to adjust in F1 as he jumped directly from F3 to the premiere class of Formula racing. Since he was only 16 when he first stepped into an F1 car, there was immense controversy regarding his age.

Was Verstappen too young when he started in F1?

Verstappen turned out to be extremely lucky to receive his full F1 debut at the age of 17 as after he did so, the FIA changed the age rules. Now, they require any driver competing in F1 to be at least 18.

They made this rule change as they deem anyone below this age to be too young to face the challenges of F1. Furthermore, they do not want to endanger the lives of any young drivers at such a tender age.

However, this age debate came up again this year when rumors emerged that Mercedes wanted one of their partner teams to sign Kimi Antonelli as early as this season despite the Italian not having turned 18. After much deliberation, the FIA agreed to make an exception for Antonelli, much to the frustration of some like American racing driver Alexander Rossi.

Rossi took to X and wrote, “Oh so exceptions can be made? Huh“. Ultimately, Mercedes have decided to sign Antonelli for 2025, a year he will be 18 and legally allowed to compete. This means that there would be no more concerns regarding his age.