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Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad believes Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is a “source of inspiration” due to the advice he has offered despite being a four-time F1 champion.
Lindblad is now days away from becoming one of the youngest drivers in F1 history, with the 18-year-old set to replace fellow Briton Oliver Bearman of Haas in fourth place. The Virginia Water, Surrey native will make his Formula 1 debut in the Australian Grand Prix on March 8.
Red Bull have placed Lindblad at sister squad Racing Bulls for his rookie F1 season alongside Liam Lawson, having promoted Isack Hadjar after one year to partner with Verstappen. Yuki Tsunoda has been demoted into a reserve driver role with the two Red Bull outfits for 2026.
Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane already admires Lindblad’s speed and hard work after seeing his initial efforts in the VCARB 03 during testing. No driver recorded more laps of the Bahrain International Circuit than Lindblad’s 240 during the second week of testing.
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Arvid Lindblad praises Max Verstappen for his ‘helpful’ advice despite being a four-time F1 champion
Lindblad has been a part of the Red Bull Junior Team since 2021 after joining it at the age of 13 while still in go-karts. He only started racing single-seaters in 2022, before finishing third in the 2023 Italian F4 championship, fourth in FIA F3 in 2024 and just sixth in FIA F2 in 2025.
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The Briton, who has Indian and Swedish heritage through his family, feels his rapid rise to F1 is similar to Verstappen’s path. Red Bull moved the Dutchman straight into Formula 1 after a single year in single-seaters, after debuting in 2015 when Racing Bulls were still Toro Rosso.
It is hard to argue that Verstappen has not justified Red Bull’s decision, as he has won the F1 drivers’ championship four times and secured 71 Grand Prix wins – the third-most in history. Yet Lindblad finds Verstappen “so humble” and a valuable aid for his help behind the scenes.
Lindblad told Automoto.it: “[Verstappen is] a source of inspiration for his attitude, [and] for his values. I think the way he conducts himself is admirable. I’ve turned to him for advice, and he’s always been very helpful.
“When I ask him something, he doesn’t just give a terse answer. He really tries to be helpful. Despite having achieved so much success in this sport, he’s so humble.
“I also think our paths to F1 were similar, very quick. He understands me very well, and it’s nice to be able to talk about it with him.”
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Lindblad is not the only driver on the 2026 F1 grid to laud Verstappen for his help. Audi star Gabriel Bortoleto has also regularly praised Verstappen for his support, including whilst the Brazilian was still rising the junior ladder before debuting in Formula 1 with Sauber in 2025.
Bortoleto and Verstappen even train together, despite the former never being a part of the Red Bull Junior Team like the latter and Lindblad. Verstappen revealed that he told Red Bull to “keep an eye” on Bortoleto in his junior career, and hopes to see him fight for wins in F1.
Red Bull never adhered to Verstappen’s advice, and Bortoleto joined McLaren’s young driver programme in 2023 after he won the 2023 F3 title as a rookie. The Sao Paulo native won the 2024 F2 title as a rookie, too, before McLaren released him to join Sauber for his F1 debut.
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