Former Formula 1 driver Jolyon Palmer puts together his perfect driver. The current analyst chooses, among others, Max Verstappen and Michael Schumacher, two drivers who, according to the current analyst, have an important attribute in common. ‘In terms of striving for perfection in the car, I definitely look at Max and Michael,’ says Palmer, who also sees how both drivers have stretched the rules too far in the past.
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With four world titles to his name, Max Verstappen is an indispensable figure in Formula 1. The multiple world champion is already in the same league as other legends, such as Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. However, that is not the only similarity Jolyon Palmer – himself a Formula 1 driver between 2016 and 2017 – sees between Verstappen and the German world champion.
Verstappen and Schumacher
Palmer was asked on the F1 Nation podcast to put together his perfect driver from attributes of drivers from the past and present of the premier class. “In terms of striving for perfection in the car – the ‘don’t settle for second place, don’t settle for less than the absolute maximum you can achieve’ – I definitely look at Max and someone like Michael Schumacher,” said the current analyst. “What they both have in common is a certain degree of controversy because they have sometimes stretched the rules too far. They were so desperate for the absolute maximum then.”
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“Instead of accepting on a certain day that it’s not working, that it’s not the right move, they try something that then gets them into trouble,” Palmer continues, immediately bringing up an example. “In Max’s 2021 season, there were many important moments where he received one penalty after another.” For example, in the season of his title fight with Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen was held responsible for causing a collision at Monza. The Dutchman received a three-place grid penalty for the incident, in which his Red Bull had ended up on top of Hamilton’s Mercedes.
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