'Machine' Verstappen masking Red Bull's true performance

Former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde has labelled Max Verstappen a "machine" who is making Red Bull look better.

Verstappen sealed a third straight world title in the Qatar Grand Prix Sprint before going on to claim a 14th win from 17 races in the Grand Prix.

He has either broken or is on course to break numerous records after his dominant campaign, having claimed a new record for successive wins after 10 straight between Miami and Italy.

His own record for most wins and points in a season - 15 and 454 respectively in 2022 - can also be overcome, whilst he could also achieve the rare feat of winning the Constructors' Championship by himself as his 433 points is 107 ahead of Mercedes' tally of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell combined.

Fellow Dutchman van der Garde, who spent the 2013 season with Caterham before embarking on a sportscar career, believes Verstappen simply does not make mistakes because of his talent behind the wheel.

Van der Garde on Verstappen

"Max makes Red Bull better," van der Garde told RacingNews365 exclusively.

"If he had been with another team, that team would have achieved more victories and it is certain that Max would have won in a different car.

"He would also compete for the title, but the how, what, where and when is just difficult to estimate.

"But one thing is clear: he is currently the best driver on the grid, otherwise you would not become World Champion three times. There is still room for improvement, but I can't point out where [he needs to]. Everything is almost perfect already.

"He is almost a machine, I see that he does everything perfectly. Whether it is a start or a qualifying lap or working out strategy with his engineer, he has everything under control.

"He simply has a certain gift - and the capacity to think about other things [while driving]. The guy is so good and I sometimes think we forget to mention that it all looks very easy - but I know how difficult it is.

"I know what you have to do and driving such a perfect qualifying lap, like he did at Suzuka, is so incredibly difficult and when you see that lap, then you really think: 'Wow, this guy!'"