Max Verstappen would ‘happily let anyone else drive’ his RB19 to test ‘odd’ theory

Expecting another weekend of track limit violations at the United States Grand Prix, Max Verstappen says he’d “happily” let those blaming the drivers test his car to see if they can do better.

Track limits have been one of the hot topics this season with 51 infringements recorded during the last Grand Prix in Qatar.

Many of those came from the same four drivers with Sergio Perez handed three five-second penalties for six infringements while Lance Stroll was given two for going off of the track five times. Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon were also penalised.

Max Verstappen wary of more track limit issues in Austin

It was a weekend in which almost every driver on the track lost a lap at some point, including Verstappen.

With the issue seemingly becoming more prevalent of late, and casting a shadow over race weekends, it begs the question is it the track’s fault, or the drivers?

That was put to Verstappen ahead of the United States Grand Prix with the Dutchman expecting yet more issues this weekend at the Circuit of The Americas.

He, however, doesn’t believe the drivers are to blame.

“I will happily let anyone else drive my car, see if they can do better with track limits!” he said.

“Some tracks, yeah, just a lot of runoff, so naturally you are a bit… you find probably the limits a bit easier because we never really talk about track limits, for example, in Suzuka and that’s probably a bit more of an old-school track.

“So, for sure, the latest kind of track standards, they have a thing to do with it and it’s a bit of a shame.

“I feel like with some of these new tracks that you’re more focused on a qualy lap to not go over a white line than actually finding the limit or just the pure enjoyment of pushing. It’s more like you’re looking at: ‘did I make it or not?’ Oh, yeah, I made it’.

“It’s a bit odd. We need to do a better job because I think this weekend will be the same story.”

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Charles Leclerc agrees that some tracks are easier to stay within the white lines than others with the Ferrari driver hoping that a solution can be found.

“I think there are some tracks that are much more difficult to manage than others. I think Qatar was one of those. I think here will be one of those too,” he said.

“I’ve always preferred, in the past, to use the red and white kerb because this is a reference that we can actually feel inside the car, whereas the white line… we are so low in the car that it’s very difficult to see exactly where we are.

“If we are two centimetres out or exactly on the line is very difficult, whereas with the kerb, you can feel it much more what’s going on and it’s a better reference. But yeah, now it’s been quite a long time that we are staying on the white line, and is the way it is at the moment.

“We just need to try and find a way, especially with the way the kerbs are done and the tracks are made, in order to help each other, for it to become less of an issue in the future.”

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