Verstappen Defends Haas Drivers: 'Don't Think They Are Idiots'

Friday, 05 January 2024 at 20:00

Max Verstappen defended Haas Formula One drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen over their poor performances.

The 2023 season was super challenging for Haas F1 drivers. Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen both showed they had the speed needed to deliver the results in qualifying sessions.

However, when it came to races on Sunday, the two drivers struggled with tire degradation too much and almost always fell down the grid outside of the point positions.

Magnussen recently said it's not only the development team's fault, as everybody in Haas is part of one team and should have contributed. On the other hand, it seems like there wasn't much he could do about the results.

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Max Verstappen defended the two Haas drivers in his recent interview with Auto Motor Sport. The Dutchman highlighted the importance of tire degradation on the car's performance.

"In any case, you need a car that carefully handles the tires. Otherwise, you are lost. You can see it on Haas. I don't think Nico and Kevin are idiots."

Haas's team principal Guenther Steiner was asked in his interview with the Athletic which person from the whole paddock he would pick if he could get him for completely free. He chose Adrian Newey.

Newey is a chief technical officer at Red Bull who is credited for statistically the most dominant car in the history of Formula One - the RB19 (Red Bull's 2023 car).

The team principal said he believed his drivers would also win races if they had a car like Max Verstappen does. Moreover, he added even the triple World Champion couldn't win a race with Haas's 2023 car.

Going into 2024, Haas is the team with the most allocated time for using the wind tunnel. This should provide a team with an advantage compared to everybody else. Do you think the American team can deliver their drivers a better car next season?