Coulthard: 'Alle puzzelstukjes vallen op zijn plaats voor Verstappen'

According to David Coulthard, all the puzzle pieces have fallen in the right place for Max Verstappen to take a shot at the world title. Red Bull is in good shape with the RB16B and the Dutchman seems to be at the top of his game himself.

In conversation with Speedweek , Coulthard explains why he thinks there is a good chance that Verstappen is a serious title contender this year. 'He is focused, fast, familiar with the team and supported from all sides. He also has quite a lot of experience in the meantime and his physical condition seems to be very good. I estimate his chances reasonably high, because now all the pieces of the puzzle are in the right place. '

In his battle for the title, Verstappen will use the RB16B, Red Bull's latest feat. The car came out as a favorite in the last winter test and according to Coulthard that is no wonder. The relatively stable regulations are in favor of the teams that were strong at the end of last season. At the moment, this mainly concerns Red Bull Racing. But we won't really know until after qualifying on March 27th. '

It is not yet certain that Verstappen's great rival, Lewis Hamilton, will remain in Formula 1 after this season. A similar uncertainty applies to several drivers who have been active in the sport for some time. When the big change will come depends on how well the drivers continue to perform. "The time will come when Hamilton, Vettel, Räikkönen and Alonso will no longer be there," predicts the former driver. "But if you're old and good enough, you're not really old."