Peter Windsor names the one F1 driver on the grid who ‘loves’ racing Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen is one of the toughest drivers to race against on the Formula 1 calendar, as evidenced by the title battle with Lando Norris this season.

The pair have clashed on more than one occasion this season, most recently at the Mexican Grand Prix when Verstappen received two 10-second time penalties for forcing Norris off track.

The incident led to questions over Verstappen’s driving standards, with Damon Hill believing the Dutchman ‘knows’ what he did was ‘unacceptable’ with Norris.

An agreement was later reached to change the rules after consultation between the drivers over what is and isn’t acceptable in wheel-to-wheel combat, with the FIA set to make a change to the driving guidelines used by stewards to help determine penalties.

It also came after Verstappen appeared to force Norris off track during the US GP to defend his podium, with the McLaren driver earning a penalty for rejoining ahead of the Red Bull.

Lewis Hamilton faced similar moves when he went up against Verstappen during the 2021 title battle, with Peter Windsor explaining that there is one driver on the grid that excels racing against the Dutchman on his YouTube livestream.

Charles Leclerc only driver that enjoys racing against Max Verstappen

One of the drivers who has raced against Verstappen since they were in go-karting was Charles Leclerc, and the pair have had a few on-track battles in F1.

Their most recent battle came for the race win came at the 2022 Saudi Arabian GP, when Verstappen overtook Leclerc after several laps of banging wheels. Windsor believes Leclerc is one of the few drivers who can actually race Verstappen and know how to handle his forceful tactics.

“He’s a short corner driver like Max, of course he loves racing against him. He understands what he’s doing, they both can predict what the other is going to do,” said Windsor.

“That’s the beauty of racing closely, that’s Jochen Rindt racing Jackie Stewart at Silverstone in 1969. Jackie knew exactly what Jochen was going to do and vice versa, that’s the beauty of racing closely with another driver and that’s what Max has with Charles.”

Max Verstappen close to clinching fourth title in Las Vegas

Verstappen is close to clinching his fourth title in Las Vegas having build up a 62-point lead to Lando Norris in the Drivers’ Championship.

The Dutchman will only need to outscore Norris to win the championship, while the McLaren driver must ensure that he can finish ahead if he wants to keep it alive into Qatar.

McLaren is more focused on defending their lead in the Constructors’ Championship, given the threat from Ferrari and potentially Red Bull if Sergio Perez’s form improves.

It will be the first time that McLaren has won a Constructors’ title since 1998, when they had Mika Haikkinen take the Drivers’ title after a battle with Michael Schumacher.