Few drivers in Formula 1 would be better to learn from than Red Bull Racing star Max Verstappen.
Heading into the 2025 F1 season, Max Verstappen arrives with a target on his back after winning his fourth consecutive drivers’ championship last year.
All eyes are on whether Red Bull can solve the consistency issues they had in 2024 and build a car capable of competing with McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes.
However, few would bet against Verstappen winning another title this year if Christian Horner’s team managed to solve the issues that left Verstappen vulnerable throughout the second half of last year.
There are also several other plot points worth considering at Red Bull in 2025, including Verstappen’s new teammate Liam Lawson and Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar.
If either driver struggles in their new role, then F2 star Arvid Lindblad is waiting in the wings and ready to step up into Formula 1 if the opportunity arises.
Horner has spoken highly of Lindblad and the teenager now has enough superlicense points to face in Formula 1 after winning the Formula Regional Oceania championship over the winter.
Lindblad believes Verstappen is a better driver than Michael Schumacher and having that level of expertise to call upon has proven to be very useful.
In an interview with the Inside Line Podcast, he explained the help Verstappen has already offered to him during his junior career.
Arvid Lindblad shares the ‘really amazing’ advice Red Bull star Max Verstappen has given him
Lindblad was asked whether he has a relationship with Verstappen through their Red Bull connection and explained: “I think Max is a really great guy.
“I think he’s really impressive because when I sort of first started to get to know him and talk to him, he really is just like a normal guy.
“He doesn’t let any of the fame or the noise go to his head and he’s really down to earth.
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“He always has taken a lot of time to talk to me, and he’s been really helpful and yeah most of our conversations have just been about racing and stuff but he’s been really great to talk to and a really amazing person to know because like I said, he’s been really down to earth and just been really open to help.”
“Some of the recent races I’ve been in the F1 paddock and the past couple of months if I’ve had a couple of questions, I’d send him a message and he would reply really instantly and it’s really impressive considering as a four-time world champion, the amount of things you have to do and to deal with.
“To be able to take the time to talk to me, it was really amazing.”
Arvid Lindblad names two Max Verstappen attributes that he would include in his perfect F1 driver
Lindblad was asked to name his ultimate Formula 1 driver, selecting different attributes from different past and present stars.
For composure, Lindblad selected Kimi Raikkonen, admitting that the 2007 champion seemed ‘pretty chilled’.
The teenager chose Lewis Hamilton for tyre management, Charles Leclerc for qualifying pace and Michael Schumacher for technical feedback, suggesting that he was ‘so switched on’ in the car.
READ MORE: Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad’s life outside F1 from height to parents
Lando Norris was Lindblad’s choice for dealing with the media, Fernando Alonso for being able to learn a track instantly and Ayrton Senna for his ability to drive in the rain.
It was then put to Lindblad that he hadn’t chosen Verstappen yet and he explained: “No, I mean, if you’d said overtaking, I mean something like that [I would have chosen him for].”
Lindblad then also selected Verstappen for his aggression, something many of his current rivals on the grid would certainly agree with.
