Max Verstappen on the P1 podcast!

Key takeaways

• Verstappen says his biggest edge over his 18-year-old self isn't raw pace but restraint—he no longer feels the need to push flat-out every lap, crediting a calmer mindset built from years of experience and now having his own family.
• He wants the engine rules overhauled, arguing for a return to V8 or V10 power units paired with a small push-to-pass battery instead of DRS. He says current hybrid deployment makes racing artificial, citing Monza as an example where cars can pass and immediately get repassed because battery limits dictate overtaking more than driver skill.
• His relationship with race engineer GP is central to his success and described as closer to family than colleagues; he says the trust built since his rookie year lets GP flag issues before Max even has to ask, which he considers the ideal driver-engineer dynamic.
• He's ambivalent about sprint races: he says winning a sprint carries little emotional weight compared to a Grand Prix, comparing it to "taking off"; done, session over. He does think sprints help teams learn tire management data that improves Sunday race execution.
• His approach to tricky conditions like rain traces back to karting advice from his father: treat whatever feels safe as still fast enough, a lesson learned from crashing as a kid that now underpins his reputation for immediately setting quick laps when track conditions are unusual.
• On adapting versus pushing for change, he distinguishes between regulation-driven limitations everyone shares and fixable weaknesses specific to his car, which he flags to engineers; while comparing data with other teams tells him when something is genuinely wrong versus just a shared constraint.

Notable moments

• On his favorite overtake: the unexpected pass after the start at Imola, where he says "no one saw that one coming" because he didn't know Oscar Piastri would brake so early and simply committed.
• On authenticity: "I've always been myself... I'm here to race. I'm not here for all the other stuff," reflecting on what he'd be most proud of beyond wins and titles.
• On the Nürburgring: he describes the thrill of his first stint there, so eager to finally drive flat out that he "almost went off" on the outlap.
• On sprint races: "For me winning a sprint, it's like taking off... it doesn't matter, you're not even winning, like whatever, you cross the line, it's all right, done, session is over."
• On modern cars feeling numb: he explains fast drivers are now forced into "the latest possible to full throttle," which he says isn't real race-oriented driving and compresses lap times across the grid.
• On his alias "Franz Hermann" for the Nürburgring 24 Hours: he registered under the fake name for fun, joking his team was laughing and asking, "Really, you want to put that down?"
• On fatherhood: he lights up describing his daughter "calling my name" and learning something new every week, admitting "in one way you don't want her to grow... but I also want to see how she grows up."

Time saved: 33 minutes.