It’s only natural for one to rush to a kin’s defense, and former F1 driver Jan Lammers did just that as he rejected criticism directed towards his countryman Max Verstappen.
The Red Bull driver found himself once again in the line of fire of some of his peers after Sunday’s Mexican GP in which he closely fought with Nico Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel.
He also provoked the ire of Mercedes bosses, with Niki Lauda in particular very critical of the 19-year-old’s maneuver at the first corner when he almost took out championship leader Rosberg.
Lammers, now 60 and who raced in Formula 1 from 1979 to 1982 with Shadow, ATS and Ensign, will have none of the bashing and slating however.
“I need to get something of my chest,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
“I thought about the criticism and looked back at what Verstappen did that was so terrible. Looking back from when he started his first GP in 2015, I conclude that it was nothing – absolutely nothing.
“Yes, he did upset a few people, simply because he passed them in a brilliant way or they couldn’t pass him because he was clever and skilful in defending.
“Of course he ‘nearly’ touched people or they ‘nearly’ touched him, but that’s the skill part of it!”
The former Grand Prix driver and Le Mans winner insists that for all the criticism bombarded upon Verstappen, he has never damaged a competitor’s car, a fact which has not been taken into account.
“How many of you Formula 1 drivers can say that over the last two years?” he said.
“Certainly not your two choir boys, Mr Lauda!”
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