Four-time Formula 1 world champion Alain Prost has told French media L’Équipe that he currently considers Max Verstappen to be the strongest driver on the current Formula 1 grid, as the former driver believes there are no weaknesses in the 27-year-old Limburger.
Verstappen claimed his fourth consecutive title in 2024, putting him in the same league as Prost and Sebastian Vettel when it comes to four-time Formula 1 world champions . This has put the Dutchman in a special league of drivers, but according to one of those gentlemen, Verstappen is far from finished with his winning streak in the premier class of motorsport.
Alain Prost believes that Max Verstappen is head and shoulders above the rest of the field, because he is not caught in any weak spots. This makes him difficult for his competitors to beat: “At the moment it is difficult to find a weak spot. I don’t know what he will do in the future, but even with all the rumours about Mercedes and the problems with Red Bull, I still thought he was very strong. He is good at everything,” Prost begins about Verstappen’s 2024 season.
2025 a special year
And that Verstappen would win the world title last season was by no means a given. Of course, there was a huge lead over McLaren driver Lando Norris, but for a long time the RB20 seemed to perform worse every race weekend. Nevertheless, Verstappen eventually managed to pull the longest straw and put a stop to Norris’ rise.
Whether that will also be possible in 2025 is still the question. Not because Prost expects Verstappen to take a dip, but because Red Bull Racing did not perform well in the past year.
“He is a very tough driver on track, but you can’t see that as a weakness. Next year [2025] will be a different debate. It will be a special year especially because it is the last year with the ground effect cars.”
“Max’s strength is that he is able to make the difference on his own in certain races, and that is a big advantage for a team and the championship. So I think he will still be number one next year, but the other teams now know that Red Bull can be beaten ,” said Prost.
