Despite losing the 2025 World Championship battle, Max Verstappen enjoyed the season: The Red Bull driver talks about his newfound fan love and why he still prefers dominance.
After a period of absolute dominance in Formula 1, Max Verstappen found himself in an unfamiliar role in 2025. He had to fight for the world championship as an underdog. Despite an improvement in performance after the summer break, he ultimately missed out on the drivers’ title by just two points to Lando Norris.
Although he would have preferred to repeat a season like 2023, in which he won 19 of 22 Grand Prix races, Verstappen admitted that the change in fan reaction was a welcome change. Instead of boos, he experienced more enthusiasm from the stands.
“To be honest, I haven’t changed as a person,” he explained during an appearance on The Fast and The Curious podcast. “Of course, you’re in a different role because you’re not winning as many races as before. But at the end of the day, what’s important to me is: Have I changed? No, I haven’t. That’s the only thing I can really say about it.”
When asked if he felt more positivity from the fans in 2025, the four-time world champion added: “Yes, I guess when you’re a bit of an underdog, that probably happens naturally. But it’s nice. It’s nice when people cheer instead of booing or whatever.”
Verstappen still prefers the dominance of 2023
Despite the expressions of sympathy, the Red Bull driver’s sporting ambition remains unbroken. “Sometimes it was nice [to be the underdog]. The second half was more fun than the first half. But for me, 2023 is still my favorite season,” Verstappen clarified.
He also countered the perception that dominance leads to complacency. “It wasn’t boring for me because I always challenged myself. That’s always the thing. People say, ‘Yeah, you’re the leader and you switch off,’ but I don’t switch off. I’m still fully focused, and it takes a lot to try to achieve those kinds of results.”
The Dutchman is now preparing for his twelfth season in Formula 1. This season will also see the introduction of new regulations for the championship. After the shakedown in Barcelona, the official tests in Bahrain will take place from February 11 to 13 and from February 18 to 20, ahead of the season opener in Australia.