“It’s going too slow” is all it takes for us to know that a driver is not happy about a safety car’s speed. Moreover, driver Max Verstappen and a safety car have already proven to be an interesting combination quite a few times! The Dutchman has much to thank for the safety car circumstances, given the situations have favored him in the past. Because Max is usually leading the race at 1-2 positions, he is also the first person to criticize the speed.

Max Verstappen criticizes the Aston Martin SC

Max Verstappen is the reigning world champion. Well, who would’ve thought of that a few months ago? Though despite dominating the 2021 season, it was a close call with Sir Lewis Hamilton. The last-minute unlapped cars and safety car situation awarded Max with the ultimate prize. However, since that last race, safety cars have somewhat become a controversial topic in F1. In fact, the FIA even sent out a new detailed brochure of car positions under safety car circumstances.

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Now there’s a controversy arising from Max’s statement against the Aston Martin safety car. The car and the driver took accusations of having a slower speed than its Mercedes counterpart and being unsuitable for F1. Verstappen was reported saying, “He looked like a turtle, on the straight he did not exceed 140 hours even if there were no dangers in those sections. I don’t know why he was going so slowly, there was already no grip. We were damaged, we had stone tires. We have to understand: the Mercedes safety car is certainly going faster .”

The authorities did not take the criticism well and also clapped back. The Federation made an explicit statement and stated, “Its pace depends on the activities needed at the moment to clear the track.” However, title contender Charles Leclerc has also reported of the car being slow.

Verstappen and his Safety Car restart ritual

In the Bahrain GP, there were situations where one cannot distinguish the title leader between Verstappen-Leclerc. Max is famously ruthless with quick overtaking and sharp awareness. It has also been seen how he has failed to keep his car behind in place and was right beside Leclerc.

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Situations like these could prove to be dangerous for Leclerc, who was on the verge of losing his lead. However, we have seen the last of this, as the FIA has come out with a statement prohibiting such maneuvers. As the season moves ahead, can we expect more changes in the whole safety car situation?