One Michael Schumacher trait that Jos imbibed in Max Verstappen according to Graham Watson - "You have to be the man around whom it revolves"

Former Toro Rosso manager Graham Watson debunked the theory of Max Verstappen having a car suiting him, crediting the performance to his natural speed instead. The former Red Bull junior team manager feels Max has a lot of the beliefs his father Jos Verstappen had from his days as Michael Schumacher’s teammate at Benetton.

Sceptics have often believed that Max Verstappen has dominated his opponents or teammates, due to the car suiting him better. The narrative was debunked in the past by Daniel Ricciardo who is the only teammate of the Dutchman to have beaten him with equal tools.

However, the gap between Sergio Perez and the reigning champion, or previous teammates such as Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon has intrigued many about the reasons behind his dominant performance. In his rookie year at the age of 17, Max was paired alongside an older and experienced Carlos Sainz at Toro Rosso, where the Dutch champion outscored the Spaniard by 31 points.

Speaking to the Dutch publication Formule1, Watson said:

“I think that Jos felt that Michael Schumacher had better material and was favoured. I had the impression that Jos had difficulties accepting that, because he also was a very gifted driver. Flavio had a strong bond with Michael, both sporting-wise and personal. It has to be your team, you have to be the man around whom it revolves. I’m convinced that you now also see this with Max: first beat your team mate, then win the title. To this day, I don’t think that Jos got a fair treatment at Benetton. And that has partly ensured that Max understands that aspect of the sport very well: he does not need better equipment, he wants the same equipment. Talent will do the rest.”

Citing an instance from the debut season of Max Verstappen, Watson said:

“I noticed that immediately in Max’s first year with Carlos. Knowing them both, I knew Max would be top dog from the moment he got in the car with us. He didn’t have to play games or be political because he’s just incredibly fast. ‘I will do everything I can to help the team move forward, and you will follow me,’ he basically said with his actions. And ultimately you want to follow him, because success brings success and people want to follow that. In our team, we supported Max because we wanted him to be successful. We all saw how good he already was.”

According to Watson, a lot of Jos’ protectiveness towards Max Verstappen in the team came from the former's unfair treatment at Benetton. The New Zealand-born team manager opines that the Dutch champion’s father always felt he was treated unfairly at Benetton, given his teammate Schumacher’s bond with team owner Flavio Briatore. He feels the triple Dutch champion was also made aware of the political side of the sport when it comes to getting similar tools and fair treatment.

In the Red Bull champion’s case, Watson feels that Jos was aware of his son’s raw speed and never demanded for better equipment but equal equipment because he knew talent would compensate for the rest. The former Toro Rosso manager says when Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz paired alongside each other in their debut year, he knew the former would outperform the latter. However, he noted that the 17-year-old did not need to be political within the team because he let his talent and speed speak for themselves.

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Former Toro Rosso manager explains team dynamic between Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz

Former Toro Rosso manager Graham Watson feels that Jos Verstappen’s involvement in the career of Max Verstappen was limited to protecting the teenager. He dismissed the rivalry between Jos and Carlos Sainz Sr, whose son is the Dutchman’s teammate. He feels both fathers were seeking the best for their respective sons to make sure they did not have a disadvantage.

Admitting there were issues after the Dutchman was promoted to the senior team, Watson feels that there were internal issues in the team as they lost a quicker driver. Despite the speculation of a rivalry between the fathers, the drivers' always shared a good rapport, according to him.

Reflecting on the debut season of Max Verstappen at Toro Rosso in 2015, Watson said:

“Jos was very involved in Max’s career back in 2015, and even so when Max moved to Red Bull the following year. That sometimes made things a bit difficult internally, but I didn’t have many problems with it. Again: why wouldn’t you want guys like Max on your team? I think there were people in our team that did have a hard time with that. Jos is very direct, it’s black or white. He wanted to ensure that Max would not be disadvantaged in any way, and he always stood up for his son’s interests. Fine. After all it’s his 17-year old son, and not a grown-up man.”

Comparing Max Verstappen to his Toro Rosso teammate and father Jos, Watson added:

“On the other side, Carlos Sainz’s father, a driven and successful rally champion, did the same. Was there any rivalry between the fathers? If there was, I didn’t see it. They both wanted the best for their sons, which is more than logical. Carlos is talented as well, I see similarities between the two. But I think Max has a little more natural speed. Jos was fast and had no fear, but missed that one little thing that gives you an advantage over your teammate. Max didn’t.”

According to Watson, Max Verstappen had more natural speed than Carlos Sainz which reflected eventually in their performance that year. However, he believes that the Red Bull champion had an extra advantage over his teammates, a quality his own father lacked in the past.

The Dutchman still remains undefeated by his teammates barring Ricciardo, who is speculated to pair alongside him in the future. While his talent has started to speak for itself in recent years, debate and speculation continue to cloud the narrative surrounding him. With the 2024 season ready to kick-start in 50 days, it remains to be seen what Red Bull and Adrian Newey have curated in the wind tunnel to make Max Verstappen unstoppable again.