Verstappen celebrates: McLaren “perfect” for not using team orders in F1.

DOHA, Qatar – Max Verstappen has expressed his opinion on McLaren’s decision not to implement team orders in their fight for the title. The Red Bull driver, known for his determination, stated that he would not accept being relegated to a secondary role in favor of his teammate.

“I would have told them to go to hell,” declared Verstappen, referring to a hypothetical situation in which he was asked to be number two.

Max Verstappen

These statements come in the run-up to the Qatar Grand Prix, a crucial race for Verstappen, where he still has a chance to take the battle for the championship to the last race of the season. Verstappen’s surprising form has made him an unexpected contender for the title against McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. After Verstappen’s victory and McLaren’s double disqualification in Las Vegas, the Dutchman and Piastri are 24 points behind Norris before the penultimate race. McLaren has maintained its commitment to allow fair competition between its drivers, reiterating that there will be no changes as long as both maintain mathematical possibilities of winning the championship, something that Piastri still has.

When asked if he was surprised by this decision and if it complicated his options, Verstappen replied with a smile: «No, I think it’s perfect!». Then, he defended the decision, arguing that no driver who aspires to win a world championship would accept that situation.

“I think you can’t do a better job than to let them run as well. Why would you suddenly say that Oscar is no longer allowed to fight? I mean, if they told me that, I wouldn’t show up. I would have told them to go to hell. So yes, if you’re a real winner and a racer as a driver, then you go for it,” added Verstappen.

Max Verstappen

Verstappen also commented on his current situation in the championship, emphasizing that there is still much to do, but that he supports the idea of McLaren drivers competing freely. “I know I’m tied on points with Oscar. There’s still a lot to do [to be champion]. But I think it should be like that, that they are free to race and I hope we can have a great battle until the end,” he concluded.

Verstappen’s change of course has been remarkable, as has Piastri’s performance in the last months of the season. At the beginning of September, Piastri won Verstappen’s home race, the Dutch Grand Prix, ahead of Red Bull, while Norris retired due to a problem with his car. Piastri left Zandvoort with a 34-point lead over Norris and 104 over Verstappen, a difference he has managed to overcome in subsequent races. When asked if he ever imagined still being in the fight, he replied: “No, personally not. I mean, probably after that race, when I got home, I thought that was it.” “But after that, we had a very good change. We definitely understood the car a bit better, we put improvements on the car. So yeah, overall, along with some mistakes also on the other side and us maximizing some results, it meant we are here. And I’m happy with that. I would have been a bit happier if we had had a better first half. But that’s life. You can’t go back in time and then change it. Overall, now until the end, we’ll just try to do the best we can.”