Max Verstappen makes his feelings known about McLaren's introduction of 'Papaya Rules' during the championship fight
Max Verstappen feels McLaren was not better prepared to fight for the Drivers Championship and it showed with how it implemented 'Papaya rules' during the season. 2024 would go down as one of the seasons where the driver who won the championship arguably didn't have the fastest car for the majority of the season.
For Verstappen, the 2024 F1 season started on a positive note, the driver was fast and the Red Bull underneath was the best car on the grid. Until the race in Miami, the Dutch driver had won all but one race in the season and shown very impressive consistency once again.
Things did change from Miami onwards as Red Bull regressed while the competition surged. This led to Lando Norris becoming one of the contenders for the title but McLaren was still quite inexperienced when it came to battling for the drivers title. The team introduced 'Papaya Rules' in the Italian GP but it blew up even in that race, as Oscar Piastri jumped Norris on the first lap.
The mismanagement meant that while Norris left a ton of points on the table, Verstappen capitalized and ended up clinching the title with a couple of races to spare.
Talking to Viaplay, the driver was questioned on his view about how the 'Papaya Rules' were implemented by McLaren and if that showed the team's inexperience. Max Verstappen felt that there could have been a better implementation from the team and it just showed how they weren't necessarily prepared for the drivers' title. He said:
"You are allowed to race’ is fine. But what’s the point? They should’ve handled that more effectively as a team. They clearly had a very good car this year, but they had a lot to learn about consistency. They did well in the Constructors’ Championship, but in the Drivers Championship, they could’ve been better prepared."
Max Verstappen on Lando Norris saying 'simply lovely' in Zandvoort
Max Verstappen was also questioned for his take on Lando Norris using the term 'simply lovely', a phrase that the Dutch driver has often used after winning races. The Red Bull driver said that he took it as a compliment and did not think too much of it. He said:
"You have to see that as a compliment. If others start copying you, it’s a compliment. I think they were very focused on beating me at Zandvoort to make a statement and throw me off mentally. But I don’t care about things like that. I was just disappointed we came up short in the race."
Verstappen added:
"Of course, I would have liked to win in Zandvoort, but mentally, it doesn’t affect me. Even a quote like that doesn’t bother me. It’s fine, just let it go, I’m already focused on the next race. You have to stay unemotional about it; if you let those things get to you, you’ll start making mistakes.”
It's safe to say that the remark from Norris did light up a fire in Max Verstappen, as the driver would emphasize using that phrase again and again when he won the race in Brazil and Qatar later in the year.