Max Verstappen challenges the government to co-invest in the future of motorsport in the Netherlands. The four-time world champion of Red Bull says this in an exclusive and extensive interview in FORMULA 1 Magazine, partly in response to the cancellation of the Dutch GP in Zandvoort. “Hopefully the government will take up the challenge. Support is important at certain moments.”
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Read the full interview with Max Verstappen in the special Zandvoort edition of FORMULA 1 Magazine. The magazine is now available in stores and can also be ordered here. Below is a short passage from the interview.
– Formula 1 is saying goodbye to Zandvoort. At some point, you will also say goodbye to Formula 1 yourself. Even after that, you would like motorsport to remain popular in the Netherlands. What do you think is needed for that?
Max Verstappen: “That is not in my hands. Popularity mainly depends on the talent that is coming up and from whom hopefully someone makes it to Formula 1. Because that creates the biggest hype. Chance always plays a role. Look at Germany in the past as well.”
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“And hopefully the government will also take up the challenge. Support is important at certain moments. Everyone has at least been able to see what motorsport can bring about. Just look at Germany. Everything has to be very green, but at the same time, that is also the country of the big manufacturers. That is a dilemma. Fortunately, they still have nice races there, like the 24 hours of Nürburgring, but even those kinds of events are already difficult to organize.”
“It is difficult to set up a structure. Motorsport is not football. It is easier to lay down a grass field and then a circuit. Money, of course, plays a huge role. We see in Spain, for example, how it can also be done, how much support there is for motorcycle riders and circuits. Of course, they have more space and opportunities there, but there is also simply more attention and priority. And you see that in many Olympic sports as well. If a country really wants it, then you can create opportunities for talents to develop and mature.”
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Read everything here about the GP Netherlands in Zandvoort
