Credits: IMAGO / PanoramiC

Max Verstappen rewrote history books in 2023, setting a new benchmark of dominance in F1. In his all-conquering RB19, the Dutchman was flawless as he registered 19 Grands Prix wins out of 22 in the season. Despite this record-breaking success, Verstappen doesn’t feel the 2023 car is his favorite Red Bull car. Instead, he revealed that it is his maiden championship-winning car from 2021 – the RB16B.

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According to a Reddit post, Verstappen revealed in an interview with L’Equipe how the pre-ground effect era cars are his favorite. About the 2021 Red Bull car, he cited, “The car [RB16B] was great, it was responsive. Today, they’ve become heavy, wide, and long.”

When asked if the 2021 cars were a little on edge, Verstappen refuted by saying how he liked the “sharper” philosophy of those cars. Contrasting those cars with the ground effect 2023 car, the 26-year-old cited, “These 2021 cars, they went faster through the slow corners, they moved better. I was having more fun.”

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Still, despite this ranking and comparison, the three-time champion is grateful for all these fabulous cars that Red Bull have designed for him. He thanked his team for being the reason for his glittering success.

Verstappen’s current dominance is a combination of his consistency and Red Bull’s superior car advantage. It is very difficult to attribute full credit to one of these two factors for the current dominance in F1. The Dutchman himself admitted that the car being fast enough is also crucial as the driver’s ability to extract the most from it.

Max Verstappen admits winning in a Haas is not possible

Further in his L’Equipe interview, Max Verstappen admitted that he won’t get a race win while driving a Haas car. He also said even a podium is a very long shot. Verstappen said, “Normally not (he reflects). Probably not [a podium]. But I’d try to do a better job than anyone else, that’s for sure. After that, if the car’s slow, it’s slow.”

The Dutchman loves a challenge and has driven in the midfield for many years before his current dominant reign. During his debut year in 2015, he drove for Toro Rosso, who always found themselves in the lower half of the grid. Still, Verstappen was able to drag the Toro Rosso car to some amazing results, with even a P4 finish at the 2015 US Grand Prix.

So, his claim that he would try to do better than most makes sense. As a result, there is every possibility that he could drag a Haas car into points often if given a chance. For now, even that may not be in Verstappen’s mind as Haas are struggling immensely. In 2023, the American team finished last in the standings.

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However, the 2024 season has begun much better than they expected. Despite predicting to be at the back of the grid, Haas have performed exceptionally well and finished on the fringes of points in Bahrain.

Their relentless efforts to improve tire degradation and race pace paid off in Saudi Arabia, as Nico Hulkenberg managed to score a point, finishing P10. So, if Verstappen gets behind the Haas VF-24, he too could spring a surprise result.