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Ferrari vice-chairman and son of founder Enzo Ferrari, Piero, has admitted that he’s been ‘following’ Red Bull Racing star Max Verstappen ever since his debut with the team.
Max Verstappen is likely to attract attention from every corner of the paddock this season, should Red Bull not be in contention to win races from the outset.
The F1 driver market will have plenty of moving parts this year, although Verstappen has signalled his loyalty to Red Bull over the past few months.
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That’s unlikely to stop a team of Ferrari’s calibre keeping a very close eye on the Dutchman’s happiness levels at the Milton Keynes-based team.
Verstappen has been linked with Ferrari in the past, and considering Lewis Hamilton is nearing the end of his F1 career and Charles Leclerc has previously voiced his displeasure with the team’s inability to build a championship-winning car.
If this opens up a seat for the 28-year-old at Ferrari, then Piero Ferrari’s admiration for Verstappen could be a pivotal factor in any future move.
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Piero Ferrari has been ‘following’ Red Bull star Max Verstappen since 2016
Speaking in an interview with Corriere dello Sport, Ferrari was asked how his father, Enzo Ferrari, would have described Verstappen.
He said: “He would have appreciated his ability to push the limits of the car.”
Ferrari then went on to say: “I was in Barcelona in 2016 when he won his first race: I’ve been following him closely ever since.”
It’s not a surprise that the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix was the moment Ferrari decided to start ‘following’ Verstappen.
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On his debut for Red Bull after replacing Daniil Kvyat, Verstappen took advantage of Hamilton and Nico Rosberg crashing on the opening lap to secure his maiden Grand Prix victory.
Verstappen remains F1’s youngest race winner, and immediately, team principal Christian Horner would have realised the true potential of the teenager.
Ferrari will still believe that Leclerc has the same level of potential as Verstappen; however, they’ve never provided the Monegasque driver with a car capable of fighting for a championship.
Even if Verstappen isn’t competitive with Red Bull this year, Ferrari’s recent track record could count against them convincing the 28-year-old to make the move to Maranello.
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Verstappen has been particularly outspoken about the new generation of Formula 1 cars, comparing them to ‘Formula E on steroids’.
Drivers are now required to manage their battery recharge and deployment throughout each lap, and there’s even talk of some qualifying efforts not being done at full throttle as a result.
It’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out over a full race distance in Australia, particularly as the circuit has fewer heavy braking points than in Bahrain, making battery management even trickier.
Verstappen’s comments were put to Ferrari and he said: “Testing has shown that these new cars require understanding; you need to know how to manage energy, but they’re more predictable than ground-effect cars.
“My father would have said, ‘They’re more honest.’ Personally, I’m convinced the show won’t suffer; on the contrary.”
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