It is understandable that Max Verstappen has no interest in attending a future F1 season-launch event in England, as a true motorsport fan does not behave as was witnessed.

That is the verdict coming from Dutch pundit Tom Coronel after the booing incident which occurred.

Coronel ‘understands’ Max Verstappen boycott stance

Launch season received a shake-up for F1 2025, with all 10 teams descending on London’s O2 Arena to reveal their liveries for the upcoming season.

However, boos were heard from the predominately British crowd when Verstappen appeared on screen at the event, while Red Bull team principal Christian Horner received a similarly negative reception.

When both took to the stage, along with Verstappen’s new team-mate Liam Lawson, the Red Bull drivers were the only ones not to address the crowd, Red Bull making that call early in the planning stages for their seven-minute slot, in order to avoid bland comments after extensive media commitments earlier in the day.

And Max’s father Jos has claimed that should such an event be held in England again, Max will not attend.

“Max has no appetite for that, to be booed like that in front of 25,000 people [sic],” said Jos in a RaceXpress interview.

“He also says: ‘If this is in England next year, they definitely won’t see me.’

“I couldn’t agree more with him. You’re there to promote the sport and showcase the new colour schemes of the cars, but when they go on a rampage like that, the question is: what are you there to do?

“He has to get ready to go there anyway, but then you get booed like that.

“I think they should take a hard look at that because that doesn’t belong in this sport.”

Reacting to the incident on the RN365 podcast, Coronel referred to it as “very strange”.

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“You see there is a big preference and it has to do with a country,” he added. “Max also said that if it’s in England next year, why should I come. I understand that one.”

Because while he does not expect all nations to be “neutral” like “Switzerland” when it comes to motorsport, as “you have to have something of a motorsport country”,  he claimed that the actions of the crowd were not in-keeping with those of a motorsport fan.

“Where is this coming from?” Coronel added. “It’s early season, a positive moment. And then such a negative wave comes over it. I don’t understand it at all!

“As a motorsport fan, you don’t do this, do you?”

Verstappen goes into F1 2025 chasing a fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship, an achievement which would set a new benchmark at Red Bull, after Verstappen equalled Sebastian Vettel’s streak of four in a row.

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