FIA president counters Max Verstappen F1 quit threat

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said Formula 1 will miss Max Verstappen if he decides to leave the sport, although is convinced the four-time champion is going nowhere.

Verstappen has made clear that he could quit at the end of the season given his dislike of the direction the sport has taken under the new regulations and the 50-50 split in power between combustion and electrical energy.

The 28-year-old Dutchman is adamant the fact he has not had a winning car beneath him has been far from his thinking. Instead, his comments have been based on his lack of enjoyment behind the wheel.

Ben Sulayem has insisted that no driver is bigger than the sport, and that many stars have come and gone over the years. Should Verstappen go, he will be missed, but he does not see it happening.

"F1 is bigger than everyone," said Ben Sulayem, speaking to select media, including RacingNews365. "Presidents come and go; teams come and go; promoters come and go; drivers come and go."

Ben Sulayem countered Verstappen's public comments, in particular, by stating, "I just met him, and he was positive."

Reflecting on Verstappen's pronouncements to date, he added: "When you are winning and suddenly you don't, of course, you express yourself, and I can understand this.

"It's the cycle of things . He won [the title] four times, and what were other people saying when he was winning?

"Now I hear Toto [Wolff, Mercedes team principal] saying to me, 'Everybody's against me', and I said, 'Yeah, but everybody was against Christian [Horner] in his time'. It's the cycle of life.

"People say things but do they mean it? If he goes, we will miss him, but the sport will go ahead.

"So many stars and teams have come and gone, but Formula 1 will always stay, and the FIA will always stay."

Declaring himself to be "a fan of the way [Verstappen] drives", and his powers of concentration, Ben Sualyem noted: "He doesn't divert. He's strong, not in his way of driving, but in his mind he's very strong.

"But after what happened, maybe last year [in missing out on a fifth title to Lando Norris by two points], and then this year, is something that I feel he had to throw out of his heart and say what he feels.

"But what he says, is it what he wants to do? I really don't think so."