- Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he is a soft target of such ill behavior
- The two-time F1 World Champion had to deal with booing and insults
- It all started during introductions by rapper LL Cool J
Following a booing spree at the Miami Grand Prix over, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he is a soft target of such ill behaviour by spectators because he is a champion.
The two-time F1 World Champion had to deal with booing and insults before and during the race in Miami.
He was the only Formula One driver who was received with hostility by spectators during the pre-race introduction by F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
Crowned by a performance by rapper LL Cool J, the insults kept coming his way but this did not stop him from giving his best.
Verstapppen said that if he was behind in the rankings, no one would boo him but they all had a reason to because he is leading the grid so far.
Max Verstappen. Photo/PlanetF1
“If I was driving at the back nobody would be doing anything in terms of reaction, right?” he posed according to Daily Mail Sport.
Taking it all like a champion, the Dutch driver said that some bile is always expected for anyone who is winning.
He sarcastically said: “It’s normal that they don’t like whoever is winning. So this is something which is absolutely fine for me as long as I stand on the top. That is the most important thing. I take the trophy home and they go back to their houses and they can have a nice evening.”
Verstappen did not like the driver introductions as staged by Cool J and Mercedes driver George Russell also seconded him.
Russell claimed the introductions interfered with his schedule adding that it was uncomfortable standing in Miami’s hot sunshine for 3o minutes.
Verstappen said he is not one of the people who love being in the spotlight citing the introduction was unnecessary.
He prefers spending his moments before a race begins talking to Red Bull engineers while walking to his car.
While entertainment is a great thing, Verstappen added that it doesn’t always have to be there given how long of a season remains.
Nevertheless, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton held a divergent opinion from Russell and Verstappen on entertainment.
Hamilton said F1 is working on making things better and having entertainers like LL Cool J perform is great.
Max Verstappen. Photo/scroll.in
He always listened to Cool J when growing up and he is now happy that such a phenomenal artist is present pre-race.
Verstappen won the Miami Grand Prix demonstrating his supremacy over his fellow teammate Sergio Perez who took a pole position but the Dutch driver still won coming from ninth position on the grid.
The Dutch driver’s weekend got off to a rough start when with a blunder in the qualifying session and was unable to correct it when Charles Leclerc’s crash ended the qualifying session.
Then, after Perez defeated Verstappen in Azerbaijan last week, the Mexican Red Bull driver qualified on pole, raising the possibility that this could be the year he finally mounts a real title push.
The Mexican started on medium tyres, much like the other members of the top seven, but by the time Max moved up from ninth to second, Verstappen had gained only 3.3 seconds on him.
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