The 2021 championship season changed quite a few things for at least two drivers and fans all across the globe. The after-effects of one of the most intense rivalries in the sport’s history killed a persona of Max Verstappen which Lewis Hamilton, among others, had brutally criticized before. In fact, Daniel Ricciardo legitimized Hamilton’s claims about Verstappen in a recent interview.

The Australian was alongside Max Verstappen soon after his first foray into the big leagues. As a young Verstappen joined Red Bull, Ricciardo’s F1 career was also taking shape but he wasn’t aware he was going to be driving alongside Mad Max. This is exactly what his recent comments highlight.

Ex-teammate Daniel Ricciardo reiterates the well-known fact about Max Verstappen

The AlphaTaruri man might be angling to get back to Red Bull to drive alongside Verstappen. However, he was the reason Ricciardo left the Austrian team in the first place. It was all thanks to the aggressive and reckless Mad Max persona which even saw the two crash in Baku in 2018. The Mercedes man has also criticized the Dutchman for the same and now in a recent spotlight from Time, Ricciardo’s comments highlight the same.

“He didn’t really care about taking a pragmatic approach,” says Ricciardo. “He was like, ‘I’m just gonna go and drive this thing and try to drive the wheels off of it. If I crash, I crash.’” 

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There you have it folks, the Dutchman was truly a menace on the rack and perhaps a danger to himself and the others. However, times have changed, and mainly driving from the front, we hardly see this side of him.

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Although, according to a recent admission by Red Bull boss Christian Horner, this side of him is only for the track.

Christian Horner reveals the true persona of Max Verstappen which is seen only off the track

We are all aware that every driver needs to be ruthless and unforgiving during their time on the track. However, this nature does not necessarily carry forward to life off the track as well. As it turns out, Max Verstappen is the same. Speaking on the Eff Won podcast hosted by Hollywood actor Dax Shepard Christian Horner revealed a side of Verstappen we don’t often see.

Horner said, “But when then when he takes the Helmet off he’s the nicest young guy you can ever meet. Very unassuming, he’s naturally shy, and fame sits uncomfortably with him. Yeah, he’s not a diva or anything like that. He’s just one of the boys.“

Even Shepard weighed in on this and added, “It’s interesting, as I’ve met the other drivers and I, of course, gather gossip about all of them, and every time I hear these stories, yeah, the kind of resounding unanimous feedback is like everyone loves Max. Everyone tells me Max is actually the sweetest guy off the track. And shy and nice.“

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So there you have it folks, with Mad Max becoming a thing of the past, the true self of Verstappen is completely different from what one would’ve assumed.