Emerson Fittipaldi shares simple reason Max Verstappen is his favourite driver over Lewis Hamilton

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Emerson Fittipaldi says Max Verstappen is his favourite F1 driver among the 2026 grid as the Red Bull star is a pure racer when he is on the circuit, no matter what he drives.

Two-time F1 drivers’ champion Fittipaldi is a big fan of the likes of Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton. But the McLaren stars and Ferrari man do not match the appeal he gets from seeing Red Bull racer Verstappen at the wheel of even an uncompetitive Formula 1 car.

As Verstappen has needed to do so far this season, Fittipaldi believes the four-time drivers’ champion is always able to force a path to the front of the field. The Red Bull RB22 is clearly the fourth-quickest car on the 2026 grid, yet Verstappen has twice qualified in second place.

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Emerson Fittipaldi loves that Max Verstappen is a pure racer at heart when on track

Verstappen utilised Red Bull’s upgrades to qualify P2 for the Miami Grand Prix this May, and he also qualified P2 for the Monaco Grand Prix in June. Mercedes ace Andrea Kimi Antonelli denied Verstappen pole in Monaco at the very end of Q3 by a margin of only 0.043 seconds.

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But Fittipaldi believes the biggest appeal with Verstappen, compared to his rivals like Norris, Piastri and Hamilton, is how the Dutchman does not beat around the bush. The 28-year-old says exactly what he thinks and is not afraid to ruffle feathers, which has been clear in 2026.

Fittipaldi told GPblog: “Max. Although he does not have a good car, he is there. He is a very good racer. When the flag drops, the b——– stops. But Lando is good, Piastri is extremely talented, [and] Lewis Hamilton is very strong.”

Verstappen has regularly taken aim at the new engine regulations introduced this year due to his hatred of the greater role that the battery now plays. Red Bull have even had to deal with Verstappen regularly threatening to quit F1 in 2026, due to his hatred of the new PUs.

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Along with Verstappen being Fittipaldi’s favourite driver, the Dutchman would also be a part of his dream McLaren line-up alongside 2025 F1 champion Norris. It is a dream that is not a complete impossibility, as it has been said that McLaren would be most likely to drop Piastri for Verstappen if the chance to sign the Red Bull racer arose at the end of the 2026 season.

If Verstappen and Norris were ever to become F1 teammates, Fittipaldi believes the former would win what would be a “dicey” head-to-head battle. The Brazilian legend who won the 1974 F1 title with McLaren suspects that Verstappen would enjoy a slight edge over Norris.

Fittipaldi added: “It would be dicey, but Max, I think he would have a little edge, but it would be very nice.”

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Norris denied Verstappen the 2025 F1 drivers’ title by just two points, after the latter sealed the 2024 crown when the former offered a late-season threat. McLaren emerged as a front-running force too late for Norris in 2024, and Red Bull’s 2025 revival was late for Verstappen.

But they have rarely had a genuine battle on the road, except for when Verstappen crashed into Norris in the 2024 Austrian GP, Verstappen drew penalties in the 2024 Mexico City GP, Norris held on to win in the 2025 Australian GP and Verstappen won the 2025 Japanese GP.