Max Verstappen fires back at Austin boss after 'unacceptable' comment response

Max Verstappen has claimed that Circuit of the Americas boss Bobby Epstein "would not be able to walk" if he experienced the bumps at Austin.

Verstappen has been outspoken across the United States Grand Prix weekend at the state of the track surface, including severe bumps at Turns 1, 4, 5, and 19. 

The one at Turn 1 is in the braking zone if a driver is attempting to make an overtake, with Verstappen explaining that he suffered a 9G spine compression in 2025, so bad were the bumps.

Lando Norris has spoken of the need to take headache tablets to combat the effects of the bumps, as COTA boss Epstein explained that he felt the track surface was fine, except for Turn 1, which he claimed the circuit was unaware of. 

Addressing Epstein's response, Verstappen offered him an invitation to sample the track in F1 machinery to experience the bumps for himself.

"I invite him to drive my car," Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365, when presented with Epstein's comments.

"I’ll see him get out again within five laps; he won’t even be able to walk.

"In that really fast sector, between Turns 4 and 5, there are huge bumps. 

"I get that the surface here is a problem, but you should have taken a closer look at that beforehand."

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Verstappen also makes F1 and FIA point

Verstappen also believes that F1 and the FIA share some of the blame for the nature of the track surface.

"They do understand what we’re saying, but you have to figure out how to solve this for the future," he said.

"You could just lay down new asphalt, but a year or two later you’ll have the same problem again. You really need to dig deeper into the issue.

"Ultimately, I think the FIA and F1 need to be stricter about this.

"I get that it all costs a lot of money, but if you know the subsoil is shifting, you just have to dig it all up and lay a new foundation underneath."