Max Verstappen broke his first F1 record right upon entry into the sport, becoming the youngest driver in history. Since then, he has achieved several milestones, which as it turns out, the Dutchman never really cared for. Currently 26 years old, the three-time World Champion admitted that records never bothered him. At the end of the day, all he wanted was a quiet day on the beach.
Appearing in Red Bull’s podcast, Verstappen talks bout the leniency adopted by the authorities surrounding the minimum age of F1 drivers. Kimi Antonelli, currently 17, could potentially break Verstappen’s record of becoming the youngest race-winner if he joins Mercedes in 2025.
Verstappen, however, doesn’t care.
“Honestly, I don’t care about the records. I mean when I’m sitting on the beach and drinking Gin and Tonic, I don’t care about that.”
Personal accolades never mattered much to Verstappen. His love for racing always trumped the chase for records.
Max Verstappen is the youngest driver to take part in a Grand Prix, the youngest driver to score points, the youngest driver to achieve a podium, win a race, lead a lap, youngest driver to score the fastest lap and the youngest driver to score a grand slam. He’s generational you know pic.twitter.com/UtjRp0yXEa
— Lewis (@lewllo_) June 8, 2022
It is another reason why Verstappen doesn’t want to follow in the footsteps of legendary drivers like Lewis Hamilton or Michael Schumacher.
Becoming an 8-time F1 world champion not a goal for Verstappen
Verstappen is a three-time World Champion already, and if he turns out to have Hamilton’s longevity, he could win more World Championships than the Briton; provided he has a good car.
NEWS: “I don’t intend to compete for any team other than Red Bull. I’m happy here and they’re happy with me. I’ll be 31 in 2028 when my contract expires and I haven’t decided what to do after that. Maybe I’ll retire” – Max Verstappen#F1 #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/VTfoKg0xeP
— F1 Naija (@f1_naija) June 1, 2022
However, Verstappen asserts that chasing the record isn’t something he wants. Verstappen wants to win every time he races but it doesn’t mean he is doing it for the records. Furthermore, he adds that many feel he will stay in F1 until he’s an 8-time champion but he won’t.
With a keen interest in sim racing, the defending world champion has a lot planned for the future. And the increasingly hectic schedule of F1 is starting to hinder his plans. Thus, for him to continue being a part of the sport, the schedule needs to be shortened. If not, Verstappen says he would have no problem walking away as he is happy with all that he has achieved.
