Max Verstappen has stressed that he has absolutely nothing to “prove” against Lewis Hamilton, following claims that the Mercedes driver approached Red Bull earlier this season over a possible switch.
The revelation was made by Red Bull boss Christian Horner, who explained to the Daily Mail how a “representative” of Hamilton’s made contact with him earlier in the season.
Red Bull have since told the BBC that it was Hamilton’s father, Anthony, who approached Horner, something Toto Wolff has stressed isn’t true.
The Mercedes boss has insisted that it was Horner who approached the seven-time World Champion, not the other way around.
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Unsurprisingly, Verstappen was asked for his thoughts on the matter and whether he’d like to have Hamilton as a teammate at Red Bull; however, the Dutchman saw no point in discussing it as he admitted it’s “just never going to happen”.
“I’m not interested,” Verstappen insisted ahead of the weekend, as reported by The Express. “I didn’t know anything when I was asked about it either. It’s just never going to happen. That scenario doesn’t exist.”
The three-time World Champion was then asked if he’d like the chance to “prove” himself against the 103-time race winner in equal machinery, following on from their titanic 2021 title scrap.
Verstappen brutally pointed out that he hasn’t got to “prove anything”, with him stressing that if he were to be joined by Hamilton at Red Bull there would “always be excuses”.
“What do I have to prove then? I don’t have to prove anything,” Verstappen stressed. “Then there will always be excuses, like: ‘He’s too old’.
“It’s never right. There is always something else to talk about. A fight between two teammates is nice, but much nicer is a fight between multiple teams, with all the good drivers in a different car.”
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Verstappen heads into the final round of 2023 having claimed victory at the Yas Marina Circuit three years in a row.
He’s certainly the favourite to win again on Sunday to make it four wins in Abu Dhabi and 19 for the season.
Should he be victorious in the final race of the season, then he’ll have won a staggering 86.4 per cent of the events this year.