Max Verstappen revealed his unlikeness to imitate others’ driving style to dominate in a race. The Dutch refused to do so even if it’s Lewis Hamilton.
In an interview after the thrilling season-opener at the Bahrain circuit, the Dutch credited Hamilton as the best driver and even mentioned looking up to the Briton. The Red Bull prodigy further added of getting inspired from the Mercedes driver along with other drivers but never trying to copy their styles.
Max Verstappen reported never to imitate his rivals to win a race. (Photo by Hasan Bratic/picture alliance via Getty Images)
The 23-year-old conveyed his reasons for not imitating, in a recent interview with Autosport, “Because if you copy stuff from others, you’re always going to be behind first of all – because you’re not innovating and becoming better than them.”
Max Verstappen on being original in the sport
The Red Bull prodigy had an amazing start in the current season, toping in all events. But the Dutch couldn’t maintain being at the top in the Bahrain GP, losing to the seven-time world champion.
Though Verstappen dominated the first half of the nail-biting season opener soon Hamilton took the lead from him. However, during the 54th lap, Max took the lead again but had to give up the position because of over-steering the car out of the track while overtaking Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton was not letting Max Verstappen take the lead at the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix. (Photo by Clive Mason – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)
The Dutch put on a neck-to-neck fight against the Briton throughout the race, and even Hamilton mentioned it was his hardest race to win.
The 23-year-old had several challenging fights with the Briton for the podium. In a post-race interview, Verstappen mentioned his likeness to lose being original than copying someone to win even if he’s against the best on the grid.
The young Red Bull racer has been known for his ethics. Even during the Bahrain race, he could have returned the position when he had a DRS advantage, but he didn’t because it would have been unfair to Hamilton.
Max Verstappen will be seen driving behind the wheels of the RB16B at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday, April 18. We can again expect the Dutch to dominate the circuit and witness the checkered flag in the upcoming weekend race.
