Time for Verstappen to choose his path

"Refreshing, but dangerous" was how Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff described Max Verstappen after the Belgian Grand Prix.

That was one of the kinder remarks aired of late, given the anger felt by some of Verstappen's on-track rivals over the teenager's driving standards.

There's no doubt Verstappen is incredibly talented, and you would expect him to be a future Formula 1 world champion, perhaps a winner of multiple titles should the stars align and the car come along that matches his ability.

Some believe that first title may even come as soon as 2017 given Red Bull's chassis-design prowess and the arrival of new aerodynamic regulations for it to exploit.

You can sense when you talk to Verstappen that becoming world champion is almost his destiny, that his belief in himself is such that he's certain it will happen one day, and most likely sooner rather than later.

Such precociousness is understandable in an 18-year-old, an age when most feel the world is not only theirs to explore, but also theirs to conquer.

It's that confidence - others would describe it as arrogance, and on occasion a fine line can exist between the two - that Verstappen is carrying with him into the cockpit of his Red Bull and onto a racetrack on any given Sunday.

For now the criticisms he has to bear appear to be nothing more than water off a duck's back, although given the growing chorus of disapproval you would expect some of the comments from his peers to be stinging a little by now.

But possessing such ruthlessness and confidence/arrogance is what separates champions from the nearly men in Formula 1.

You can only hope those characteristics do not mean a reluctance to listen, to heed advice, as can often be the way with teenagers who believe they know best.

Verstappen has been already been warned by Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen that he will "have a massive accident sooner or later", while Wolff also suggested he would "end up in the wall heavily one day".

Such remarks are not meant for headlines, but to alert Verstappen to the path he is heading down, most certainly a dangerous one with potentially frightening consequences.

For now Verstappen is ready, willing and able to defend himself - both on and off track - showing scant regard for experience and reputation.

At last year's Canadian Grand Prix, Felipe Massa derided Verstappen for his accident in the previous race at Monaco (pictured above), when he impetuously ran into the back of Romain Grosjean.

During the drivers' press conference on the Thursday ahead of the Montreal race Massa repeated his remarks in front of Verstappen, only to receive short shrift and a cutting quip from the then rookie 17-year-old.

Such a rigorous defence is now translating onto the track, in particular now that Verstappen is in a frontrunning position with Red Bull, but it's rubbing many people up the wrong way.

At present there's an on-track magnetism between Verstappen and Raikkonen, rather like the situation in 2011 between Massa and Lewis Hamilton, who appeared unable to get out of each other's way as they were involved in incident after incident.

Raikkonen's ire was first raised in Hungary when his attempts to pass Verstappen were met with elbows-out resistance.

After the drivers' briefing the next weekend in Germany, Jenson Button suggested that Verstappen had been spoken to, coming to the conclusion that "he understands a bit better now than he did before".

If that was the case, then Verstappen clearly forgot all about that Hockenheim meeting come race day at Spa.

There was a degree of pressure on his young shoulders that he would arguably not have experienced before, given that the grandstands were packed to the rafters with Dutch fans hoping to cheer him onto the podium.

Verstappen did not disappoint in qualifying by claiming his first front-row start, becoming the youngest in F1 history to do so, and from there the expectation levels would have soared.

Come the start, though, his race rapidly unravelled as he bogged down off the line and on the short run down to the first corner found himself trailing not only Rosberg, but also Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel.

There would likely have been a concoction of frustration and disappointment boiling inside Verstappen in the moments it took him to make a decision to cut inside Raikkonen at the apex of such a sharp corner.

Perhaps an older, wiser, calmer head would have bided their time, recognising that the run through Eau Rouge and Kemmel Straight would have afforded them an opportunity to reclaim lost places.

Instead a racer's instinct merged with the impetuosity of youth, and Verstappen can count himself as equally to blame for sandwiching Raikkonen as Vettel on the outside for turning in.

It was the incidents that followed involving Raikkonen, though, that drew greater scorn and scrutiny, both relating to him flexing his defensive muscles.

Raikkonen was enraged at being forced off the track at Les Combes as Verstappen took the inside line, hitting the brakes late, giving the Finn no option but to cut the chicane.

It was ruthless, hard, on-the-limit racing, but nothing we've not seen before in the occasional close-quarters battles between Mercedes team-mates Rosberg and Hamilton.

It can end in tears, though, as occurred in Spain and Austria this season, and it's something Verstappen must be mindful of, because not everyone will yield as the experienced Raikkonen has so far done.

The shimmy of a move from Verstappen along the Kemmel Straight, with Raikkonen in his slipstream, is what angered the 2007 world champion the most - as we heard from the expletive-laden rant that followed over the radio.

We've seen the consequences of what happens when a car hits the back of another at the wrong angle, when Mark Webber's Red Bull was launched over Heikki Kovalainen's Lotus at Valencia in 2010.

A shiver runs down the spine when considering where Raikkonen could have ended up given the forestation that lines that particular straight.

There is one common thread that unites all these incidents, old and new: not once has FIA race director Charlie Whiting or the stewards even launched an investigation, never mind penalised Verstappen.

Post-race at Spa there were comments from another world champion, Jacques Villeneuve, and others in the media - basically people who should know better - suggesting that Verstappen is being protected by the FIA.

I make no apologies in saying to Villeneuve, and the others, that to suggest the FIA would stoop so low to simply safeguard a rising star is puerile drivel!

The truth is that Verstappen has so far not crossed any regulatory line, but he is sailing perilously close to it.

Even team principal Christian Horner suggested as such when he remarked that Verstappen "was on the edge".

You could argue that the regulations are not tight enough, but that's not Verstappen's fault. He is simply driving to the letter of the law, even if there are those who consider he is broaching an unwritten code among the drivers regarding on-track etiquette.

Should the FIA's rules be amended because one driver is stretching them to breaking point? You would think, and hope, not.

Verstappen, though, is not making any friends. That probably doesn't concern him in the least, but he would be wise not to alienate himself too much.

You could suggest Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher operated in a lone-wolf capacity on track, impervious at times to those around them, and it served them well given the 10 titles they earned between them.

But to many they would also be described as flawed geniuses, operating outside the law on occasion to serve their selfishness and desire to succeed at all costs.

Verstappen has so far earned himself a sparkling reputation for being brave, daring and, right now, just a little dangerous, and that's drawing in the crowds to F1.

But he is also standing at a crossroads. He could be willing to accept his peers' suggestions that he is crossing a line - even if the regulations do not make it explicit - and adjust his behaviour. That will take him down one path to wins and titles in the correct manner.

The alternative, based on a blind belief that what he is doing is right and carries no consequences, is far more dangerous and will earn him little or no respect.

It's time for Max to choose.