“That’s Exactly What the Sport Doesn’t Need”: Gerhard Berger Is Glad to See End of Max Verstappen Dominance

With 19 wins out of 21 races in 2023, Max Verstappen set new standards of dominance in Formula 1. The title-winning run continued in 2024 but it was anything but a dominant campaign for the Dutchman. That, for Gerhard Berger, is a positive sign as far as the sport’s engagement with fans goes.

The former Ferrari driver gave a positive review of the 2024 season in an interview with Auto Motor und Sport. He admitted that it was refreshing to see not a single team or driver dominate throughout the season. While he admits it wouldn’t be ‘very pleasing’ for the concerned team or driver, it certainly was for him as a spectator.

“We’ve seen it often enough. Ferrari with [Michael] Schumacher, Mercedes with [Lewis] Hamilton, Red Bull with Verstappen. Everything revolved around one man, and that’s exactly what the sport doesn’t need. A situation like that is very pleasing for the respective team and driver, but as a spectator, I want more variety, different teams and drivers who can win,” said Berger.

The Austrian confessed to having developed a preference for MotoGP in the past few years. That was because he could never predict a winner right until the final corner of the race.

He found the 2024 F1 season to be similarly competitive as he found himself hooked until the final lap of the race. Berger believes F1 “will be back where it should be” if the trend continues in the coming years.

In his assessment of the end of Red Bull’s dominance, the 65-year-old found it hard to believe how quickly it happened. Despite being pragmatic, he never expected the Austrian team to ‘crumble’ just six months after the unfortunate demise of Dietrich Mateschitz (Red Bull’s founder).

Berger blames ‘political games’ for Red Bull’s decline

Red Bull found themselves in the middle of a crisis even before the 2024 season started. That was courtesy of the charge Christian Horner faced over alleged ‘inappropriate behavior’. The issue snowballed and the team split into two factions — the Jos Verstappen faction and the Horner faction.

“It is often the beginning of the end when such issues are raised. Formula 1 is so complex and so competitive that you can only be successful if everyone in the team pulls together, if everyone agrees, and communicates well with each other. The Red Bull brand has always radiated happiness and a cool image. Suddenly everything has changed,” Berger opined.

He raised Sergio Perez’s contract saga as an example of the shift in the team’s mentality. Berger found the Mexican’s contract extension as a sign of indecisiveness, which clashed with Mateschitz’s brand of clarity in management.

Regardless, he still rates Verstappen very highly. However, he finds the reigning champion “pulling the chestnuts out of the fire”. That makes it exciting for Berger to see if the team will pull through with its star driver. Failure to do so might result in Red Bull losing him to a rival team.