Red Bull F1 boss Horner: Verstappen stronger driver after setbacks
Max Verstappen's recent frustrating spell of retirements have made him a stronger and more composed driver, his Red Bull Formula 1 team boss Christian Horner believes


Verstappen has endured a frustrating first half of the 2017 season and has retired from five of 10 grands prix, including a run of two finishes from the past six races.
While two of those four were the result of collisions, reliability issues have also cost the Dutchman likely podium finishes, including a potential victory in Azerbaijan before his engine failed.
But while that situation has frustrated Verstappen, Horner said those failures had improved his driver's resolve.
"I think he has shown tremendous maturity, to be honest with you," said Horner.
"He's had a flair of emotion at the time, but very quickly he's got himself under control and focused on the next event.
"The way he's driving this season, he's just getting stronger and stronger.
"It's been a bit of character building for him.
"I think he'll come out the other side a stronger person with this being a difficult part in his very short career so far. But he has dealt with it very, very well.
"He hasn't been spitting his dummy or throwing his toys out of the pram.
"He's had his moment at the race, which is understandable, and then very quickly, boom, focused on the next event. His work ethic is very strong."
Horner thinks 19-year-old Verstappen deserves particular praise for the way he has responded to his setbacks given his age.
"He's 19, he's 20 later this year. It's often easy to forget that this is a guy that can't even rent a hire car here," he said.
"He should have only just finished his education before going to university.
"So for somebody so young, the way he's handled all the pressure [is impressive given] the expectation and now the interest particularly in his home country, which follows him around the world.
"You've only got to look at the contingent of Dutch fans at Silverstone over the weekend and particularly in Austria just over a week ago.
"And I'm sure Spa is going to be nuts as well this year. It's impressive how he deals with that interest."

Verstappen's run of retirements ended at the British Grand Prix as he finished fourth, and Horner hoped that would act as a good starting base to build on in this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix.
"It was pleasing to see him take the chequered flag [at Silverstone] because the last three races, he's been in great positions and in all three [previous] races and it hasn't gone his way," said Horner.
"Now we need to start to keep building on that.
"Hungary represents hopefully a chance of a good result for us so we need to build on what we achieved over the [Silverstone] weekend."

Ilmor wants partner to work with on 2021 Formula 1 engine project
Lando Norris to drive for McLaren in Hungary F1 test

Latest news
Double F1 race winner Jean Pierre Jabouille has died
Former French Formula 1 driver Jean-Pierre Jabouille has died on Thursday at age 80, French media have reported.
IMSA champion Jarvis to contest full ELMS season with United Autosports
Reigning IMSA Sportscar Championship title-winner Oliver Jarvis will contest the European Le Mans Series with United Autosports alongside Formula 2 convert Marino Sato, in addition to the World Endurance Championship.
20 years on: Porsche’s 911 GT Daytona 24 Hours giant-killing relived
IMSA’s new GTP class for LMDh cars had a more auspicious debut last weekend than the Daytona Prototypes that arrived in 2003. Back then, they were humbled by a GT Porsche 911, which won the Floridian sportscar classic by nine laps.
Entries open for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award story
Entries have opened for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award, with budding motorsport engineers invited to apply for the revamped prize.
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
How do the best races of F1 2022 stack up to 2021?
OPINION: A system to score all the grands prix from the past two seasons produces some interesting results and sets a standard that 2023 should surely exceed
Who were the fastest drivers in F1 2022?
Who was the fastest driver in 2022? Everyone has an opinion, but what does the stopwatch say? Obviously, differing car performance has an effect on ultimate laptime – but it’s the relative speed of each car/driver package that’s fascinating and enlightening says ALEX KALINAUCKAS
Why F1's nearly man is refreshed and ready for his return
He has more starts without a podium than anyone else in Formula 1 world championship history, but Nico Hulkenberg is back for one more shot with Haas. After spending three years on the sidelines, the revitalised German is aiming to prove to his new team what the F1 grid has been missing
The potential-laden F1 car that Ferrari neglected
The late Mauro Forghieri played a key role in Ferrari’s mid-1960s turnaround, says STUART CODLING, and his pretty, intricate 1512 was among the most evocative cars of the 1.5-litre era. But a victim of priorities as Formula 1 was deemed less lucrative than success in sportscars, its true potential was never seen in period
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.