Racing
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Timo Glock says Max Verstappen is speaking out on Formula 1’s current regulations to “save F1” rather than attack it, arguing that the world champion’s total commitment to racing makes his criticism carry more weight.
Speaking exclusively to RacingNews365 at the Nordschleife, former Formula 1 driver Timo Glock said Verstappen is “not negative against it” but is “saying what he thinks to save F1 because they are on the wrong route at the moment.” For Glock, that matters because Verstappen’s frustration is rooted in how the current cars have to be driven, particularly with the greater emphasis on energy management and deployment.
“I don't think it's the right way to drive around in F1 cars, you need to go slower through a corner to be quicker at the end, that doesn't make sense,” Glock said. “That's not the DNA of F1 and that's what he's saying as well.”
Glock’s argument is that Verstappen has earned the right to make that case because of how deeply involved he is in racing beyond his grand prix schedule. He pointed to last year’s F1 film presentation in New York as the clearest example. While other drivers were there “showing up in a suit taking photos,” Glock said, Verstappen “was inspired and doing a GT3 test with his team,” which “shows everything” about how much he cares about the sport.
That, Glock said, is also why Verstappen is willing to say publicly what others will not. “He has the balls to say it, and he would say every time what he thinks, and that's what makes him the Max Verstappen we know,” Glock said. “That's what he's doing on race tracks, that's what he's doing outside of a car, and he doesn't care.”
He backed that up with another example from an Imola Formula 1 weekend, when Verstappen’s sim-racing team was contesting a 24-hour race and he “did a stint in the middle of the night” before he “jumped in the F1 car the next day, and won.” Glock also said Verstappen’s preparation for the Nordschleife included “2,000 laps in the simulator,” not for fun but to understand the circuit in detail.
Taken together, Glock’s view is that Verstappen’s criticism should be read as a driver defending what Formula 1 ought to be, not simply venting about a rule set he dislikes. In racing terms, Glock believes the bigger issue is that the sport’s technical direction is pushing drivers away from attacking corners in the way F1 has traditionally demanded.