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Max Verstappen believes Italian Grand Prix winner Pierre Gasly is better off staying at AlphaTauri than seeking a quick and potentially punishing return to Red Bull as his teammate.
“Anyone can go back and try again, but it will not be successful,” the 22-year-old Dutchman told Reuters in a video interview at the Tuscan Grand Prix.
If that sounds arrogant or intimidating, it is not intentional.
As one of the most popular properties in Formula One, and considered the heir to six-time Mercedes world champion Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen enjoys top turnover on his team. He also tells how he sees it.
In Gasly’s shoes, Verstappen said, he would stay still.
Gasly, who has become the clear leader at AlphaTauri, struggled at Red Bull last year before being demoted to the sister team in a trade with British-born Thai driver Alexander Albon.
His surprising victory at Monza last Sunday raised speculation about another change, but Verstappen suggested that Red Bull had more pressing priorities in the battle with the dominant Mercedes.
“At the moment we are not fighting for the championship anyway so it doesn’t really matter,” he said of the importance of having a strong teammate.
The Dutchman, a winner at Silverstone last month, has suffered two withdrawals but finished the other six races on the podium and has beaten Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas four times.
With Ferrari struggling, Red Bull are the closest rivals, but they seem to have missed an opportunity.
“I think from the beginning it was a missed opportunity,” said Verstappen, third overall. “The dominance that Mercedes had from the beginning was very difficult to achieve throughout the season.”
“Now I think it’s about trying to settle for the third.”
When asked how many more wins he could expect this year, he replied: “At the moment, pure pace, none.”
