Prost Defends Verstappen: 'Respectful' And 'Doesn't Cheat'

Sunday, 05 January 2025 at 13:04

Four-time F1 world champion Alain Prost defended Max Verstappen's driving style as he praised the Dutchman in a recent interview.

Max Verstappen recently shared his method of coping with outside criticism. In 2024, the Dutchman faced a lot of it for his behaviour towards the team, racing style, and incidents on the track.

The instance when the 27-year-old faced probably the biggest outrage from pundits, F1 experts, and the media was after his two incidents with Lando Norris at the Mexico City Grand Prix.

1996 F1 Champion Damon Hill back then compared Verstappen to a cartoon villain character, Dick Dastardly, and Martin Brundle suggested that the Dutchman's legacy would be tainted by his sporting attitude.

Alin Prost, on the contrary, suggests that he finds Max Verstappen's driving style respectful and emphasizes that Max Verstappen is "not a cheat." He told l'Equipe:

"On the track, I find him very respectful. He's not a cheat. You're going to talk to me about track limits, but it's the way he drives; it's an education. For him, it's the norm. The best proof of this is that when he is penalized, he accepts it. As always, he goes as far as he can."

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When Prost was asked whether there are too few drivers that could stand up to the 27-year-old Red Bull Racing F1 driver, he replied:

"It's now the rule that you can't have two drivers of the same level in a team. Today, we can't change that."

"But Max still had to deal with Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly, and Sergio Perez. They were no rookies. We're talking about Grand Prix winners."

Pierre Gasly wasn't a Grand Prix winner when he was promoted to the team alongside Max Verstappen, but the point remains—no matter who was set next to the Dutchman, he ultimately beat everyone. The four-time world champion added:

"The good thing about Max is that he's free. He doesn't cheat: he is who he is, he does his thing. Tomorrow he could tell you that in a month he's going to stop, and nobody would be surprised."

"That's him, and that's his thing. He certainly cares a lot less about the image he may have than a lot of other drivers."

"But I think he'll be remembered as an incredibly talented driver. Very tough, of course, but his four titles are totally deserved, and he's right up there at the top."