The Las Vegas GP is not an event that is dear to Max Verstappen, and the three-time champion made it clear from the very beginning on the day of the grand opening organized by F1 with lights, music and, of course, a big show.
The Dutchman is taking every opportunity when he has a microphone in front of him to show his most critical side.
Golf and F1 combine in wacky Netflix Cup ahead of Vegas GP
“You feel like a clown,” the driver pointed out at the very start.
After riding for the first time on the track, he was asked if he enjoyed it.
“No, I’ve been to better tracks in my life,” he said.
“Monaco is at the level of the Champions League. This is the National League.”
This is not a hatred of the city, but rather of everything Formula 1 has organized to celebrate this Grand Prix.
“I love Las Vegas, but not to drive a Formula 1 car,” he explained.
“I like to go out, have a few drinks, turn everything red or whatever, you know, be a little bit crazy, have good food.”
“[The track] is not very interesting. There’s just not a lot of corners, to be honest. I don’t think it’s that exciting, that’s all.”
Mas Verstappen on the street circuit in Las Vegas
Stresses the seriousness of Sainz’s incident
Beyond all the events and characteristics of the track, Verstappen also shared his thoughts on the incident and penalty suffered by Carlos Sainz during the first day.
A manhole cover hit the Ferrari of the Spanish driver, who had to change his car almost completely and mount a new battery, which meant that the FIA penalized him with 10 grid positions for Sunday’s race.
“The rules have to change for that!” he noted about the penalty.
In addition, the three-time champion warns that the accident could have ended with worse consequences.
“Carlos also said he didn’t feel anything in his legs for a few seconds, the accident could have been much worse,” he added.
He is shocked by the treatment of fans
What happened with Sainz meant that the first free practice session ended only nine minutes after the cars had started running.
Organizers decided to tell fans who were in the stands in the meantime to leave.
Attendees had spent more than $1,000 for a single seat and it was announced that the compensation would be a $200 voucher to spend on merchandising.
“There is money to be made on tickets here, if I were a fan, I would trash the whole place,” he said, once again showing his dissatisfaction with this weekend of racing.
