Red Bull's Max Verstappen needs a teammate who is fast enough to support him in races, says the Dutchman's father, Jos.
A Formula 1 driver himself from 1994-2003, the elder Verstappen continues to be a central figure behind-the-scenes in his son's career, and has watched on as he has had two years of sub-par teammates.
Partnered with Pierre Gasly for the first 12 races of 2019, the younger Verstappen outscored the Frenchman 181-63, and has since outscored his replacement Alexander Albon 259-140 across 22 races, with a commensurate difference in pace in both instances.
As a result, the Dutchman has often been left to fend for himself in contending with the front-running Mercedes' of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, with his father adding to the chorus of voices calling for another teammate change for 2021.
“At the moment I don't think it's going well enough, Max needs a strong teammate,” he told the Ziggo Sport show Peptalk. “The last race [Sunday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix] would have gone differently for a start. If his teammate had been behind Hamilton, he could have come in earlier, so Hamilton would have had to come in too. Then the cards would have been shuffled differently.”
“With a good teammate you also get better test data. If you have two drivers who can go their separate ways, you get more information that way.”
As to the question of whom should fill the second seat, Verstappen refused to be drawn, but stated he and his son were on the same page.
“There can only be three drivers: Albon, Perez or Hulkenberg," he said. "I have the same preference as Max."
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