😲 Alonso's BIG Verstappen F1 admission

Fernando Alonso doesn't dish out compliments to rival F1 drivers easily. But he's full of praise for Max Verstappen, as the Red Bull driver continues to dominate the 2023 season
#f1 #maxverstappen #fernandoalonso #formula1 #f12023 #f123 #f1news #verstappen #alonso #redbull #redbullf1 #redbullracing #astonmartin #astonmartinf1 #formulaone #grandprix #therace

[@LeDelan13]

If aloonso praises your craftmanship and even admitting someones better atm then you know you are good

[@1985slipstream]

Alonso was saying lance was a fast driver. Its all mind games with him

[@carlosmorgadosilva3517]

@@1985slipstream that's because his boss is also Lance's daddy. I'd like to hear you speak shit about your boss' son

[@aaronhusain1659]

@@carlosmorgadosilva3517if do it right in front of the boss wtf nobody gets special treatment not even the special people

[@loicludwig429]

​@@1985slipstreamAlonso is a Max fan for a long time and even proposed him to do Le Mans together.

[@loophole3526]

@@1985slipstreamwithout pressure to perform Lance is a good and fast driver. He does not handle pressure. The moment papa Stroll said he wanted a double podium Lance crumbled. Also in Zanfort Stroll got screwed by strategy.

[@DarkCyberUK]

'Alonso to join RB for 2025'

[@ryobibattery]

Holy based

[@Grooove_e]

The way Helmut Marko runs that team i could definitely see that happening

[@samiraperi467]

That would be an interesting season.

[@ChefofWar33]

Honestly not too crazy. Could totally see it.

[@josegrullon024]

Alonso wouldn't roll the dice at his age and history to join Red Bull when they will be powered and pushed by Ford. Ford has not made an F1 engine in decades. For that he will just be the main driver for Audi🤷🏾‍♂️

[@LouSassol69er]

I'd love to see Alonso in a Redbull alongside Verstappen. That would be interesting. As a one off season before he knows he's going to retire or something. If Redbull would have the balls to give us that kind of entertainment.

[@bubblewrapvillain]

I don't think Alonso stands a chance. He would do better than Perez though.

[@m73m95]

Red Bull would never have that. They've always been a "clear #1 and #2 driver" team. They create monsters that they can't even control sometimes... They couldn't contain the carnage of 2 super talented drivers

[@bubblewrapvillain]

@@m73m95 it rarely works for a team to have two 2 drivers taking points away from each other unless they are really far from the competition. It's great for the show, but horrible for team harmony.

[@perp1exed]

RB can put Sir Jackie Stewart in the second car and still win the constructors. It's just insane how Max is leading both championships all by himself 🤯

[@tylerjennings8242]

That is my dream team for sure

[@bhatiabn]

If max pulling 7 seconds in 3 laps from checo isn't saying anything, I don't know what is.

[@HatZ.PetoriaZero]

That's more of a testament to Checo underperforming

[@Nautijan]

And if checo would be close Verstappen then it would just be car

[@itsmatt517]

It’s saying Perez is done

[@mark5071]

That's because Perez was told to go easy on his tyres, and he did. Verstappen was also told, but obviously didn't. Clearly Verstappen was much faster, but the 7 seconds in 3 laps is inflated.

[@Dutchtreat-pn3cj]

​@@mark5071How much evidence do you need? The excuses are getting more and more absurd.

[@Mtlmshr]

I watched a interview with Alonso yesterday where he talked about his preparation before a race the one thing I took away from him was his absolute attention to detail by not letting the smallest of details go unnoticed then going over everything again and again until everyone that he works with during a race is on the same page to the backup plan of the backup plan for any possible situation that may occur

[@perp1exed]

The man is a beast, quietly crushing Stroll while picking up podiums left and right. At 42!!!

[@MegaEmmanuel09]

Max has got a whole bio-mechanical neural network built into that car, and I won't think otherwise until he bins it 😂

[@GPFMotorsportNews]

And with that you proved the absense of a neural network in your head...

[@episcot]

You mean like when he almost binned it into the wall at Monaco

[@MegaEmmanuel09]

@@GPFMotorsportNewsI'm saying that the performance of the car is as if it's tailor-made for him. He's had many snaps this season but hasn't fully lost it *yet*. Like, Mick splitting the car in half bottling it

[@willsharp4392]

@@MegaEmmanuel09 it is tailor made for him. max is incredibly skilled at managing oversteer, to the point that most other drivers would find his car undriveable, given how different it is

[@watersnortmoment3734]

@willsharp4392 Albon’s a damn good driver and he explained how the RB feels to drive. According to him, it’s like driving on a controller with the sensitivity maxed out, that is to say a little bit of turn in goes a long way in the Red Bulls.

[@FonzNRG]

Alonso, Verstappen.. drivers hated by many (especially British) F1 fans, but it’s their straightforwardness which makes them amongst the most admirable drivers on the grid.

[@voldanmalak]

Absolutely. Max is extracting every last drop of performance from that car week in and week out. It’s beyond commendable even if we all know who is winning every race weekend. I hope he’s able to keep it going as the others catch up.

[@lordgibbness]

Plus he knows he'll annoy Hamilton by praising Max 😅

[@danielgreensides8463]

😂

[@1fast72nova]

Man Alonso is not only one of the greatest drivers ever he's an absolute class act

[@mark5071]

Alonso can be a class act. But like all of the greatest drivers (except Stirling Moss) he has his bad moments too.

[@ferst262]

@@mark5071 he has British media all over him, not really bad moments. He got harassed for years, and McLaren in 2015 promised him a title winning car and gave him that crap, then all the british cried when he completely justified started trash talking the biggest dissaster in F1, they took away Alonso and delayed his battles for his 3rd title. Imagine that he had the equivalent of AM 8 years ago, when he got it promised, he would for sure end up winning his 3rd title, instead now he got delayed 8 whole years. And people still blame him for complaining...

[@Enzoblueblood]

@@ferst262 he had a chance to win his 3rd in 2010. Yeah he got done on strategy in the last race but he threw points away with errors early in the season. 2012 is one of his greatest seasons.

[@ferst262]

@@Enzoblueblood he didn’t throw more than the rest, he almost won it with the 3rd fastest car, with a McLaren those years he would have 2 more titles

[@Enzoblueblood]

@@ferst262 sorry, I should’ve said if he hadn’t done what the others did he would have won. He was in a McLaren in those years

[@iDropPhats]

Max just has such insane skill and a very racing IQ. He just knows when to push at what moment, how far his tires will go, how to manage his race, etc… he’s in a class of his own. A lot of people don’t like Max, but you can’t deny he’s in the peak of his prime and is one of the greatest talents we’ve seen in a very, very long time. That much was evident since the beginning of his days in F1.

[@ThmsDouglas]

People who don't Like Max are either Merc/LH fans or fans who are tired of him winning so much otherwise personally I don't see how you can hate the guy.

[@MrBingping]

He's right. This season, this moment in time, he is in a different league. In the past he's been impatient and reckless at times, but he's been absolutely faultless this season and his ability to maximize his pace while managing tires is nothing short of incredible.

[@dutcharest9731]

he's fully correct on that accord, max is just unstoppable in that red bull, even more than seb in 13 or or lewis in 20 or schumi in 02 or mclarens in 88, or most likely any other season both in the entirety of f1 history and near future

[@Arash14]

When The Great Fernando Alonso acknowledges greatness, it must be absolutely true!

[@JohnKuhles1966]

Crazy Dutch 🇳🇱 GP track where everybody says it's nearly impossible to overtake with modern day F1 cars has just set an all-time overtake record with 186 overtakes in the race... 🤯 :)

[@patrickwhite4449]

People said the first championship (when he finally got a competitive car) was when he unleashed his skill. And then the next year when he had a lot less competition they said that year he unleashed even more. And now the year he has ZERO competition he has reached his final form and unleashed even more! I wonder what will happen next year?

[@robertoverbeeke865]

Verstappen and Norris in Red Bull. They are going to murder the field. Norris is going to get wins. They will race. Max will get number 4. All the haters are going to have good evenings.

[@CS-pl8fc]

It couldnt have been more clear than this last race. Once Max switched to inters, he was immediately 4 seconds faster per lap than Perez who pitted the lap before. 4 seconds. In the same car. Unreal

[@The_Curious_Cat]

Yes, but RB is to blame on that pace differential. They did say to Pérez to save tires because they thought they could last until the next rain shower, meanwhile to Max they didn't. And the difference was 2 seconds per lap, not 4. Then after came the pitting of Max first to undercut him and Pérez baffled by the undercut because if he was first on track, he should be the one to be pitted first... And no, that order is not decided by each engineer, it's decided by the team itself.

[@CS-pl8fc]

@@The_Curious_Cat the first full lap max was on inters he was 4 seconds faster than checo. Watch it again. And no, checo should not have been given the preferred strat on either stop because he is clearly a second driver and an all around bum.

[@n8pls543]

@@The_Curious_Cat If you go over to the onboards, they told Verstappen to save tires as well. I would also like to point out that if Red Bull was truly doing the first/second driver thing, it would be like 2014-2016 when Mercedes would literally not let the second car pit if the first one decided they didn't want to go in, so Pérez would not have been allowed into the pits early for the first stop.

[@ZAH33D]

​@@CS-pl8fchypocrisy is unreal lmfao

[@vwbora26]

​@@n8pls543and we all know what Max do when odered to save tires...

[@CT37BN]

Max seems to have god level feel when it comes to knowing and describing to his team what the good and bad areas in his car. This level of knowledge can be seen especially in tricky race circuits and inclement weather. Alonso, Vettel, Michael Schumacher and the other classic greats have this characteristic.

[@AugmentedGravity]

Truer words have never been spoken.

[@nikytamayo]

Anyone could win in the RB, but very few by as big a margin as Max. On balance, Max has been 0.3s ahead of most team mates in qualifying, similar to Alonso or Hamilton. But his nearly 0.9s gap to Checo at some junctures is unprecedented. From the early season understeer issues, seems like they've progressed and tuned that car on the knife edge of oversteer to give it that extra speed under DRS and Max is absolutely loving it. He is incredibly in tune with that car.

[@jaguatiricaimediata5305]

He has the fastest car WHEN driven by a driver who knows how to deal with a Oversteery/Low drag car. People conflate a fast with a easy to drive car. Perez is not bad driver at all (else he wouldn't have so many brilliant moments and even pocketing Hamilton in a few fights), but he can't manage well that car style which was suited to Max preferences, but which every engineer DREAMS about designing but can't find a driver who can tame it.

[@ryancuda45]

i was in perez corner the first half of the season but the pressure got to him and he binned it. max its really impressive and consistent

[@selder_7]

I think you can hold the dual beliefs that you are the better driver but another driver is doing better right now. They have to believe that they are the best, they just aren’t getting to show it

[@connorclarke1218]

Max would beat anyone right now. Anyone

[@ballaking1000]

It's Bridgestone. Or nothing.

[@Astronomynatureandmusic]

The way that the RB19 needs to be driven to be so quick is hard. This is apparently because the rear end is very unstable when driven on the limit. Max likes it to be this way, I heard.

[@patb6430]

What a wonderful insight into what everyone already knew! Im so glad this has been said out loud, because every f1 fan thought that every other driver was not winning on purpose

[@rememberingeverything9700]

He's right even though max's rb19 is one of or the most dominant f1 car ever he is taking 115% of it especially when we compare him with Pérez. We have to respect what he is achieving and WE HAVE TO RESPECT WHAT ALONSO SAID BC UNLIKE HAMILTON HE IS APPRECIATING WHAT MAX IS DOING RN. I'm lewis hamilton and mercedes fanboy but I am truly disappointed with what lewis and toto said about max recently

[@arihantchoubey7364]

If alonso praises someone.. he's seriously good

[@janjelen3856]

Seems like max would fight for podium even in Alpha Tauri

[@jelmerj.reitsma4270]

Great, Fernando Alsonso , great words , showing your quality , professionalism , integrity and character values. You are to me , an example for many people in F1! Thank you very much !❤

[@noto-bs]

alonso will never forget 2007.

[@danielgreensides8463]

Greatness appreciates greatness

[@Thermalions]

As much as I'm not a Verstappen fan, Alonso's not wrong.

[@stephaniebaker2960]

I Love you Alonso💚

[@haristopal8664]

That's a sign they will be future team mates

[@retom7]

This is 100% the truth. The RB car IS the best, but that’s only allowing Checo to finish alright even though he’s not a top driver. Many others would have that car in 2nd place every week. Max is the most consistent driver week after week and what you’re seeing this season is amazing. Put him on any team right now and he will be your #1 guy on that team. Speaking highly of Max is easier than admitting to people I’m still a Ferrari fan… getting harder and harder every race.

[@jankempynck3745]

All real great F1 drivers, actual or retired, agree with Fernando and praise Max achievments . Only one mediocre, jealous F1 driver don’t want to admit it, including his very low fallen team boss. This shows their true nature.

[@m73m95]

Game respect game... Though I suspect Alonso would be feeling/talking differently if he and Max were teammates. Alonso is notoriously harsh on teammates (except for his time with Button, but that McLaren was so bad, I don't think Alonso cared what happened during that time). I suspect he and Max would be fierce rivals, if they were directly competing against each other.

[@ZAH33D]

_2007 flashback intensifies_ *Alonso: The team is conspiring against me to support the Dutch driver!*

[@mark5071]

I think it's also about age. His ego isn't as big as it used to be (but still there of course).

[@ZAH33D]

@@mark5071Don't get me wrong, he's one of the best by every means, just not that good of a sportsman.

[@seashackf1]

He has the rep of being notoriously harsh, but reality shows otherwise. It’s just the media from one country that likes to push that narrative. He gets along well with teammates as long as they are fair with him. Look at Vandoorne. They have remained great friends. Fernando has always spoken well of him and now Stoffel is with him at AM. He even got along well with Ocon. Having him at events at his kart track. Even after Ocon started racing him dirty he never publicly came out against him. It was up to the team to stop that and they didn’t, just like in ‘07, and that who he spoke out against, not Ocon. He also got along with Fisichella. Massa wasn’t too bad either, especially given their prior history. He’s usually been the driver with the most friends on the grid. Used to play poker with Webber and Kubrick. Pedro DLR has been with him for many years. Andrea Stella left Ferrari to follow him to McLaren.

[@streetburner15]

like duh, checo is a certified GOOD driver and max is kinda dusting him rn. that red bull is very very good but max is also on another level. don’t wanna speak too soon but a sign of the true greats, hope he solidifies his position there

[@autistische_baksteen]

Not gonna lie alonso looking jacked LOOK AT THE BICEP GAAD DAMN

[@illumitabris]

i have a hard time believing this. Fernandos taking a car Stroll is a backmarker in and taking it to the front. Max and Alonso in the same car would be trading wins back and forth. Maybe Lewis too but its hard to tell if its the car or the Lewis

[@warrenself]

Stroll would be a backmarker in the Red Bull or at least do as poorly as Perez is. Probably Alonso’s easiest teammate to defeat.

[@pindajung]

Perez is waaaay better than Stroll

[@B__L]

Max is taking a car that Perez struggles to podium with and making it look like it's in a league of it's own. Perez is a very good driver and Verstappen is making him look absolutely tragic.

[@khoellebasnight4428]

Lewis took pole this year in the fourth fastest car - what do you mean it’s hard to tell if it’s the car or not with him 😂

[@perp1exed]

Fernando and Lewis are too smart to go up against Max in his absolute prime in that RB package. He's absolutely crushing Checo who's no slouch!

[@TunedIntoCars]

He's been eyeing that 2nd RB seat for a while. What better way to increase his chances than to praise Max 🤣

[@jackidk1995]

Alonso and max in a rb would literally be unstoppable. If one has an engine failure or something the other will just win. That would be epic. I respect all drivers on the grid but alonso is my favourite by far

[@gummy_chops]

Albon is doing really good job right now aswell

[@sz27web]

I think only Alonson and Hamilton are on the level of Verstappen, but even if either of them would drive in a RB they couldnt perform like Verstappen does for the same reason that Verstappen probably couldnt do it in 2020 Mercedes car or 2005 Renault car. The car is in someway developed around Max' driving style so even if you put the top tier drivers in it, they (probably) cant do the same.

[@MartinSicilia-hl1oi]

Well, I read what he said as, when you have a car that makes you feel comfortable and is competetive, it allows you to access 100% of your talent more often so at best it was a back handed compliment........but hey that's Just me ;)

[@ncjay08]

I would put Verstappen among drivers like Schumacher and Senna. On top of their game, they are untouchable.

[@abitoutofsorts]

I agree. Max isn’t my favorite driver, but it is incredible to watch him hone his craft.

[@BenElliottAustralia]

Alonso wants that 2nd RB seat! That’s why he’s giving props!

[@WilliamDiotte]

Alonso is the true goat, name someone else at 42 years old driving a f1 car better than most of the field

[@JohnnyJailBait]

It’s obvious vergoatsen is performing Bette than the car is alluding to, Perez isn’t exactly dominating 2nd spot and how many 2nd places does he have. Stappo would embarrass everyone in equal cars, maybe senna is the only one that could keep up

[@ChuyR.]

Helmut said it himself, Miami was probably Max's best performance of his whole career, it was overshadow by Checo's "failure" to keep up with him for the championship though.

[@jakubkrcma]

It is sure that Max is at an all-time peak performance (in F1 history). Also, Max is the most improved of all the greats. 👍

[@TheHarrie93]

The mutual respect between these two drives is something Lewis only could wish for.

[@rodracer4567]

Max and Lewis do respect each other. Its their fans who are at each others throats

[@pranavps851]

@@rodracer4567 idk, Hamilton stirs the pot once in a while.

[@tuttutteddy8889]

I’ve been saying alonso tryna get that rb seat. Then the old alonso will come out for that title

[@nightrider3808]

And there you have it ! Max was struggles in Singapore, but even so, He fight and fight ! Carlos did a Great job and mad respect to this driver. But Max will be pick up the gloves in Japan ! 🇯🇵 BANKIA !!

[@Lailas776]

If that was say Ricciardo and Perez in that Red Bull we’d be seeing an epic three way team battle for the championship. As it stands I totally agree with Alonso - Verstappen is just on another level. He is extracting 110% from that RBR.

[@bubblewrapvillain]

The season is amazing if you ignore Max. The battle for P2 is intense.

[@markovasil1608]

Alonso beating both Mercedes just shows what an incredible driver he is

[@Andrew-rd4ig]

Max Verstappen Fernando Alonso to see that as him giving respect to you no one has ever had that before from Fernando😮

[@KeVsPIXEL]

Having the best car in the grid is one thing and being the most consistent driver in the grid is another.

[@Dr1z.]

Hamilton: Dude wtf?? How will people believe me now?

[@jasonwarnock8992]

I wish Alonso was in the other Red Bull. That would be exciting.

[@ivarb629]

Under appreciated you mean

[@jelmero3090]

Yet these so called 'arm chair experts' claim the complete opposite of Alonso. I wonder who knows better 🤔

[@aashutoshgaurav5674]

He doesn't need to say this. It's clearly visible Max has been the class of the field this year

[@B-kl8vj]

Sucking up real hard for Checo’s seat.

[@alainbelanger4547]

Checo you need him even qualified 5-6 he a handful for the front runners excluding MAX

[@thathonkvision]

I would say lando is also taking out if the mclaren

[@jussayinmipeece1069]

Alonso is just trying to get one last year in F1 at RBR

[@OmDahake]

thats great

[@aaronturner4597]

Verstappen is the greatest there has ever been, the manoeuvres and the not buckling under pressure along with everything he races off the track put him in a league of his own, and he’s only half way through his career, though the word gets overused it’s not in this case,we are witnessing a true GOAT.

[@perp1exed]

It's magic for sure, but let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet. I'd love to see him attempt the triple crown!

[@penusliski]

Oh well, he's older enough to be his father so no problem admitting that. However, it still takes a character to openly say it

[@conorlaithe7980]

I wish to prefes this comment with saying I'm no Hamilton fan, but it I do feel like every time Alonso says anything good about another driver he's trying to piss off Hamilton and probably succeeding. Alonso has never put away his fencing steel since Mclaren.

[@BigBampot]

Can you imagine Alonso in the RB 😂

[@whitneyabrahams5249]

Thankyou Alonso. Please tell that too the Mercedes team they do not think so..

[@schwabit989]

Toto could learn a few things from Alonso.

[@GTDpowah]

Alonso is playing at something. Possibly even trying to get himself into 2025 RB seat. He isn't going to give high praise like that if he doesn't believe he stands to gain anything by it.

[@511dydy]

Hes just trying to annoy hamilton 😂

[@JulioGalicano]

That's great Alonso moved to RB since 2025😊

[@theklaus7436]

Alonso is known for saying what he believes. Respect for that

[@snowflakeca2079]

Alonso RB24!!! 🧨

[@SniPantsu]

"it takes a lot to suggestiong another driver is doing better than he is" because he always was the BEST driver on the grid until Verstappen grew in maturity

[@episcot]

There is only one issue with his words - they are select

[@aadamishmael8549]

Alonso isn’t silly, he always compliments the main driver of a team he wants to move to……

[@aaronpaterson7582]

Alonso is looking to drive Red Bull

[@iwantchocolate8017]

El nano = the best

[@skyhigh6089]

The title makes it look as if Alonso never acknowledges another driver's talent, which is just false. Leave that to "my teammates were better" Lewis.

[@Matt-sy9lk]

It’s not whatsoever. He’s had a car developed to his exact driving style for around 5 years. The gap between Sergio and max is obviously partly due to max being a better driver but also the fact red bull suit all verstappens needs and none of checo’s.

[@ploppyjr2373]

While that’s true, it does actually make sense. The car that max likes to drive is objectively faster than the car checo likes to drive. The reason teams don’t make cars that pointy is because barely anyone car drive it.

[@tigertank1a421]

Does that mean Lewis done a better job at that moment than when Alonso was his team mate😂

[@umkhwenyana]

Fernando is a world-class GENTLEMAN...as is Dan Ricciardo! I salute them!

[@dopy8418]

He wants a shot at Rebull’s second seat ….

[@BennyBsolo]

Lol , what Scott's boy toy Hammy ?

[@rexstetson1717]

I can’t stand Max, but there’s no denying he’s the best right now.

[@chrispoplar718]

Fernando Alonso declared his old Formula 1 rival Lewis Hamilton to still be "faster than anyone" - including Max Verstappen.

[@stuartanderws5705]

I'm winning so why damage the engine and gearbox.

[@Hakie62]

What’s new, that’s obvious

[@adanlgfernandez7152]

Verstapen no es tonto se pira con el motor Honda....

[@96wtfomg]

Everytime Alonso praises someone you act like its impossible that he did, as if it was out of character or something. He also said Hamilton's achievements are under appreciated. Do you have a problem with him or what?

[@flavioc5389]

Hamilton and Hamillettes cry hard 😭

[@CrusaderAce24]

Ok child

[@voldanmalak]

You are what’s wrong with F1.

[@perp1exed]

Never gets old! ❤

[@ZAH33D]

"Lance has potential to be a World Champion one day" - Fernando Alonso

[@perp1exed]

@@ZAH33D whatever pays the bills

[@jon8236]

If Alonso praises someone else you can guarantee it’s actually a veiled dig at Hamilton 😂