Verstappen Would Have Been Best Even In 1979 According To Scheckter
F1Friday, 22 December 2023 at 05:00
1979 Formula One World Champion Jody David Scheckter discussed Max Verstappen's driving style and suggested the triple-World Champion would be the best even in his era.
Max Verstappen won his third title during the 2023 season. By doing so, he equaled some of the F1's all-time greats, like Ayrton Senna, Nelson Piquet, Niki Lauda, Jack Brabham, and Jackie Steward.
The 26-year-old naturally became part of the GOAT debates on how he would perform compared to the above-mentioned drivers in their time.
The F1 World Champion who won a title in 1979 with Scuderia Ferrari, Jody David Scheckter, recently stated he believes the Red Bull driver is better than anybody from his era. He told Gazzetta della Sport:
"He is better than anyone who ran in my era. The difference that is sometimes pointed out is that people say that in those days, they were 'real men' who risked their lives."
The Former F1 driver admitted he realized after he finished his career how lucky he was to survive the tough era of Formula One when safety measures weren't as rigorous.
"The cars often broke down, not the Ferrari but the Tyrrell did, for example. I realized later that I was lucky: my greatest success was to stay alive, and I never even ended up in a helicopter to the hospital."
Scheckter saw a bit of himself in Verstappen as he described the "reckless" element that the Dutchman possessed at the beginning of his F1 career.
"I started out a bit reckless, like everyone, when you're young, you try to show talent and courage. Max did it too and I didn't like the way he raced at the start of his career, because he showed no respect to the other drivers."
The triple World Champion crashed quite a lot in his first years, but as his race engineer pointed out in a recent interview, important turning points came in 2018 and 2021 as he started gaining experience and more consistency.
The 26-year-old evolved his driving style and improved to the point where he was the only driver in 2023 to score points in every single race. He is now on his way to breaking Lewis Hamitlon's record for the most consecutive point finishes. Scheckter added:
"Then the penny dropped with him, too, that you don't win races and especially championships if you cause incidents and contact with other cars."
POPULAR NEWS
Norris 'Couldn't Sleep For Two Days' After Sao Paulo Grand Prix
Hamilton Admits Mistake After Qualifying In Las Vegas: 'I Didn't Do The Job'
Verstappen Grateful to Hamilton After Scoring P5 in Qualifying
Verstappen After Scoring P17 In FP2: 'Like Driving On Ice'
Hamilton Warns Mercedes Doesn't Know Why They Were So Fast In FP1 And FP2
