Ten years ago the F1 world was abuzz as a 17-year-old Dutchman made his F1 debut.
Max Verstappen entered the sport with eyes on him like perhaps no other rookie in F1 history in 2015, with many questioning whether he was too young to compete at the highest level of motorsport.
So controversial was his age, that a rule has since been passed to ensure that nobody as young as Verstappen will ever start a Grand Prix again, ensuring that his record as the youngest ever F1 driver will remain intact as long as that rule stays in place.
Of course all the controversy and questions that surrounded him have since been put to bed, as Verstappen has gone on to four World Championships and set numerous F1 records – and he is on his way to becoming one of the greatest drivers of all time.
Max Verstappen. (Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
Speaking to The Roar at Albert Park this weekend, Verstappen reflected on his debut ten years ago in Melbourne, and admitted if he was able to go back and offer his younger self some advice that would help him along his F1 journey, he wouldn’t have any to give.
“Nothing to be honest,” he said.
“It’s important to make your mistakes and of course feel that excitement at the time because if I would have told him at the time what he would achieve in the sport then it’s pretty boring to know what’s ahead, right?
“You need to have that uncertainty. You need to feel the pressure of having to perform at the time, trying to work your way into a top team. All these kinds of things. So, no, nothing.”
Verstappen enters the Australian Grand Prix as the defending four-time World Champion, and is aiming to become the first driver since Michael Schumacher to win five consecutive World Championships.
But for the first time in several years he enters a season as an underdog, with his Red Bull team struggling for pace and the car considered to be further down the pecking order than this time a year ago.
“We found, already, a few areas that we can work on and that’s what we’ll continue to do so,” he said. “I know that we are not the quickest at the moment, but again, it’s a very long season.
“If you would have asked that question here last year and then at the end of the season again, you know it looked completely different.
“A lot of things can always change quite quickly in Formula One.”
