Max Verstappen spent over two minutes to completely dismantle F1's Las Vegas Grand Prix in an extraordinary rant.
The 26-year-old, who will start from second on the grid on Sunday, made his feelings clear as the F1 prepares for its race in Las Vegas in 40 years.
He looked very, very unenthusiastic when his name was called out during the introductions earlier in the week.
And he continued to express his dissatisfaction at the 50-lap street race as he pulled no punches live on Formula One TV.
Advert
“I can go on for a long time," Verstappen said. "Of course, the show element is important, but I lack emotion.
"For me when I was a little kid it was about the emotion of the sport, that’s what I fell in love with and not the show around it. As a real racer, I think that shouldn’t really matter.
“A racing car on a street circuit anyway doesn’t really come alive. It’s not that exciting. I think it’s more about proper race tracks. When you go to Spa, Monza, these kinds of places they have a lot of emotion and passion. For me, seeing the fans there is incredible. And for me as well, when I jump in the car I’m fired up and I love driving around these kind of places.
"Of course, I understand the fans maybe need something to do as well around the track, but I think it’s more important that you make them understand what we do as a sport, because most of them just come to have a party, drink, see a DJ play or a performance act.
"I can do that all over the world, I can go to Ibiza and get completely shitfaced and have a good time. People come and they become a fan of what? They want to see maybe their favourite artist and have a few drinks with their mates, and they go out and have a crazy night out.
"But they don’t actually understand what we are doing and what we are putting on the line to perform. If you would actually invest more time into the actual sport, what we’re actually trying to achieve here. As a little kid, we grew up wanting to be a world champion."
Verstappen added: "If the sport put more focus onto these kinds of things, and also explained more what the team is doing, what they are achieving, what they are working for. These kind of things I find way more important to look at than just having all these random shows all over the place.
"For me, it’s not what I’m very passionate about and I lack passion and emotion with these kind of places. I love Vegas, but not to drive an F1 car.
"I love to go out, have a few drinks, throw everything on red, to be a bit crazy and have nice food. But like I said, emotion, passion, it’s not there, compared to some old school tracks."
What's your take on the Las Vegas Grand Prix? Let us know.
Topics: Max Verstappen, Formula 1
Nasir Jabbar