“I would put my money on it”: Max Verstappen would win the F1 championship with Ferrari, claims F1 pundit

Max Verstappen has been in sublime form for the past three seasons, racking up 27 wins and two titles since 2021. While the Red Bull driver has enjoyed a pace advantage against his competitors this season, former F1 driver Michael Bleekemolen believes Verstappen could win the title in a Ferrari.

While Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are yet to score a podium finish, Bleekemelon reckons Max Verstappen will be a championship threat driving the SF-23.

Speaking about the reigning champion winning the title for Ferrari, the F1 pundit told GPFans:

"Yes, I would put my money on it. I think so. Who is good, the car or the driver? That’s true in a lot of teams."

While the Italian team has suffered from reliability issues, driver errors from both Leclerc and Sainz led to a disastrous outing at the Australian GP. The team went home scoring zero points in Melbourne.

Ferrari SF-23 in Australia

Ferrari's SF-23 has proved to be rather uncompetitive compared to its previous year's challenger. The team has failed to deliver on its pre-season hype, ending up with the fourth-fastest car on the grid. Regardless, the 73-year-old Bleekomelon reckons Verstappen will be winning races driving the SF-23.

Michael Bleekomelon has such confidence in Verstappen's abilities that he went on to add that the two-time champion would drag an uncompetitive McLaren into midfield.

The 73-year-old added:

"Put Max in a McLaren, he might be in the middle of the field or even further forward. Who’s to say?"

F1 Grand Prix of Australia

Max Verstappen clearly has an edge over his experienced teammate Sergio Perez, as he comprehensively outperformed him in the previous year. The Dutchman won 15 races last year compared to Perez's two wins in the same machinery.

The Verstappen-Red Bull combination has been a dominant force over the past two years. Early trends for the ongoing season also indicate that the pairing will wrap up the championship early in the season.

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Former F1 champion addresses Max Verstappen's comments on leaving F1

Max Verstappen recently made waves when he shared his dislike for the new format being introduced in F1 for the sprint weekend.

The Red Bull driver is not a fan of these structural changes and he "won't be around for too long" if the higher authorities continue to experiment with new formats.

1996 Formula 1 champion Damon Hill called the reigning champion's comments "very unusual." He said on the Sky Sports F1 podcast:

"It's kind of strange to hear, isn't it? I mean, what's he going to do with himself? He should stop now really. Stop now, he's done it."

He further reasoned why Verstappen made such comments, adding:

"I think fun is a very important point. Is he having fun, because I sometimes think he's not having fun. I think you have to love what you're doing, otherwise it's a grind."

F1 continues to alter the format of its standard weekend, trying to pack in more action on Saturdays and Fridays. However, this initiative might backfire if drivers don't like the format.