Max Verstappen is a double Formula 1 world champion whose talent is unquestionable – but one racing legend has pointed out a problem the Dutchman also brings.
Verstappen sealed his second drivers' title this year in dominant fashion. It was mathematically impossible for anyone to catch him with four races left in the season and he finished the campaign with one of the largest margins of victory ever seen in the sport.
It was a strong year too for his teammate Sergio Perez, who recorded personal bests in terms of points earned and number of races won. But still the feeling persists that Red Bull need more from their second driver than the Mexican has been able to produce.
He is hardly the first driver to be overshadowed by Verstappen. Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly before him failed to make much of a mark, while the young Dutchman's emergence at Red Bull was one of the factors in Daniel Ricciardo's decision to leave for a race seat at Renault.
Should Red Bull decide to make a change, Lando Norris is the man whose name has been most strongly linked with the seat. He is tied down to McLaren until 2025, but Red Bull have shown interest in the young Brit before and could be tempted to open their chequebook to secure one of the grid's brightest talents.
Asked if he feels Norris should make the move if the opportunity comes along, Dutch racing legend Tom Coronel pointed out the main problem that Red Bull have when it comes to finding the ideal partner for Verstappen. "Whether he should sit next to Max? No," the veteran of more than 1,000 races told Formule1.nl.
"Then he will get the same as all those others. Beside Max, your career just ends. It was wise of Norris not to go to Red Bull. It is better to wait for another opportunity. He actually does that now." Coronel went on to add that McLaren is "actually the wrong team" for Norris and told the 23-year-old to "find an opportunity elsewhere".
Despite persistent speculation that Norris could look for an opportunity with a top team, McLaren chief executive Zak Brown insists he is confident that the Brit's long-term future lies with his current employer. "I'm convinced we're going to give him a winning car," said the American.
"We have a long-term contract with him. I think he feels very comfortable within the team. Other than obviously the pressure we put on ourselves, because we don't want to just give him a winning car, we want to give us a winning car. So, I think we've got a runway to get there. He knows the journey we're on. He has bought into the journey that we're on, and I think it'd be early to be worried about it."
