Max Verstappen is only so strong because everyone at Red Bull works for the Dutchman and builds him a car exactly according to his taste. A common Formula 1 thesis. One that a former world champion has now taken apart.
Jacques Villeneuve doesn’t believe in claims that Red Bull bases the design of its Formula 1 cars entirely on the needs of superstar Max Verstappen.
“Everyone said, ‘Oh, but the car was made for Max. Poor, poor second driver.’ Actually, no. “Max is working on it, he’s making the car better and better,” said the 1997 Formula 1 champion in the “High Performance” podcast.
“If you’re not able to drive it (the car, editor) or find out what the problem is during a season, you end up getting slower and slower and slower. Not because you’re really slower, but because Max is getting faster and faster. That’s because you’re not able to really understand what’s going on with the car,” said the Canadian, referring to the huge gap year after year between Verstappen and his Red Bull stablemates.
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Villeneuve gave the example of Sergio Perez (number two at Red Bull from 2021 to 2024). “Every year they started the season on equal terms and that was it. Perez didn’t slow down, Max got faster and faster and faster.”
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The difference between Verstappen and his garage neighbors lies in the four-time world champion’s understanding of vehicles, according to Michael Schumacher’s former rival.
“He can really understand what’s going on with the car,” Villeneuve explained. “You have to figure out what you need to get into that perfect zone where you drive the car, where it becomes an extra part of your body that you don’t even have to think about. Very few drivers can do that.”
The difference between Verstappen and his Red Bull colleague was also striking in the 2025 season: While the Dutchman scored 421 championship points, the Japanese Yuki Tsunoda only collected a measly 30 points in 22 races for the Bulls.