As world champion, Max Verstappen is one of Formula 1’s biggest ambassadors. And he finds himself on a collision course with the championship’s modern modus operandi at times.
Verstappen has no interest in being famous, probably would not care if F1’s TV audience was one or one million and thinks grands prix should be all about the competition.
As the Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend proved with multiple takes on the event, Verstappen can come to represent the view of the traditional motorsport fan. In some ways that makes him the antithesis of the kind of champion and ambassador Liberty Media-era F1 would ideally want.
F1 bosses would certainly have appreciated a kinder spin on the modern, glamorous incarnation of the Las Vegas GP.
Verstappen took things a little far at times with the negativity, saying he would tear it down if he was a fan offered a $200 gift voucher in return for being kicked out of the track on a farcical Thursday night, and implying that those attending this event either did not understand or were not interested in the racing.
But the underlying irritation with this event and the demands it puts on him was ultimately consistent with a core Verstappen belief. Racing is what matters to him.
The more he is trotted out like a show pony, the more he has to race on tracks he doesn’t like, the more he’s encouraged or even forced to try to build his brand, the more it will annoy him and the more he will rail against it.
This is not a dissection of whether Verstappen is right or wrong. It is his view, it is the view of many others, and it is a valid view.
It is just interesting to understand where it comes from. Verstappen does not twist the knife for fun and is not just doing this for effect.
He may have laid it on a little thick, but it all came from an honest place.
As far as Verstappen’s concerned, if you believe in the product, then let it speak for itself. Let fans come to love F1 for what it is – not for the bells and whistles it is being increasingly decked out in.
His impassioned monologue after qualifying merits being read in full. You can do that at the bottom of this feature.
But this section, on balancing putting on entertainment for fans with prioritising the sporting element, gets to the crux of it: "It's more important that you actually make them understand what we do as a sport because most of them just come to have a party, drink, see a DJ play or a performance act.
"I can do that all over the world. I can go to Ibiza and get completely s**t-faced and have a good time.
"But that's what happens and actually people, they come and they become fan of what?
"They want to see maybe their favourite artists and have a few drinks with their mates and then go out and have a crazy night out.
"But they don't actually understand what we're doing or what we're putting on the line to perform."
Despite the Las Vegas GP being in the firing line, this was not just about one race.
There’s a bigger picture – the bulging calendar, the sprint races Verstappen dislikes so much, the marketing demands of being a world champion who represents a massive brand but just wants to keep a low profile.
F1’s current existence is quite complicated. It has boomed in recent years and, for the first time ever, broken out of a bubble of dedicated support.
There has always been a mystique around F1 that has had the potential to attract interest from allcomers, and its peak moments and biggest stars have always permeated the public consciousness to a degree. But never like this.
And the commercial rights holder wants to milk that for all it's worth, hence prioritising growth in all aspects – number of races, number of fans, its footprint in the US, revenue, and so on.
Verstappen, by comparison, comes at it from a very simple viewpoint: I love racing, I just want to focus on the racing, why can’t everyone else?
That’s a privileged position to adopt given Verstappen is now compensated handsomely for his devotion to the craft he loves so dearly. But it’s at least a sincere one. And it clashes with the modern F1 mission.
That is partly why Verstappen was so revved up in Las Vegas. It was about more than just one event, it’s just this one perfectly encapsulated the gulf between what he wants F1 to be and what he thinks it risks becoming.
And coming back to Vegas, it’s worth remembering how street tracks fit into Verstappen’s previous criticism of F1’s direction too.
He is not a fan. He loves old-school circuits with big, fast corners. So why would he spare Vegas, high-speed though it is in places, the same criticism?
As far as Verstappen’s concerned, you can dislike the track while still being impressed by what F1 pulled off.
"That’s my personal feeling," he said. "Everyone has their own preferences.
"I do think that it looks amazing. I mean, what they have built in such a short time space, I think looks incredible."
Verstappen’s tune clearly changed a little by the time the race had happened, as he eased off on the abuse.
"I always expected it to be a good race," he claimed afterwards. “So that has never been my issue.
“It was fun. That's the only thing I want to say about it. I hope everyone enjoyed it.”
The fact the Las Vegas GP was both entertaining and of a good sporting quality was a big relief for F1, no doubt. And not just because it spared the event another round of headline-grabbing Verstappen soundbites. It was important for this race to work as a race too.
Whatever you think of how Verstappen views some of F1’s most excessive modern features, we can probably all agree that F1 can never prioritise 100% sport or show. It will always be a mix.
Too far either way and it will either lose what Verstappen grew up loving from the racing side, or what is attracting many new fans even today.
Who knows, maybe the future of races like Spa will be shored up by the success of modern events like Vegas that allow Liberty to preserve the classic races that are not commercial blockbusters.
Despite some choice, head-turning phrases perhaps suggesting the opposite, Verstappen does get that it’s a matter of balance.
That’s why he found himself singing Viva Las Vegas on his inlap, in a race he’d just won wearing an Elvis Presley-style race suit, and was willing to give praise to the event where it is due – not even 24 hours after he had given a pretty emphatic smackdown.
VERSTAPPEN’S BEST VEGAS MONOLOGUE IN FULL
“Of course, a kind of show element is important but I like emotion and for me, when I was a little kid, it was the emotion of the sport I fell in love with and not the show of the sport around it. Because, as a real racer, that shouldn't really matter
“First of all, a Formula 1 car on a street circuit, I think doesn't really come alive. It's not that exciting.
"I think it's more about just the proper racetracks. When you go to Spa, Monza, these kind of places, they have a lot of emotion and passion. And for me, seeing the fans there is incredible.
"When I jump in the car there, I'm fired up and I love driving around these kinds of places.
“Of course, I understand that fans, they need maybe something to do as well around the track.
"But I think it's more important that you actually make them understand what we do as a sport because most of them just come to have a party, drink, see a DJ play or a performance act.
"I can do that all over the world. I can go to Ibiza and get completely s**t-faced and have a good time.
“But that's what happens and actually people, they come and they become fan of what? They want to see maybe their favourite artists and have a few drinks with their mates and then go out and have a crazy night out.
"But they don't actually understand what we're doing or what we're putting on the line to perform.
“I think if you would actually invest more time into the actual sport, what we're actually trying to achieve here…As a little kid, we grew up wanting to be a world champion.
"If the sport put more focus on to these kinds of things and also explain more what the team is doing, try to see them, what they are achieving, what they're working for.
“These kinds of things I find way more important to look at than just having all these random shows all over the place.
"For me it's not what I'm very passionate about and I like passion and emotion with these kinds of places.
“I love Vegas, but not to drive an F1 car. I love to go out, have a few drinks, throw everything on red or whatever - to be a bit crazy, have nice food.
"But like I said: emotion, passion. It’s not there compared to some old school tracks.”
