Max Verstappen handed unusual compliment by F1 champion: 'He's alone right now'

Max Verstappen is "not better" than the "very good" drivers from F1's illustrious past, according to Jacques Villeneuve - though he still believes the Dutchman is currently in a class of his own.

As part of an exclusive interview with RacingNews365, the 1997 F1 drivers' champion spoke about a range of subjects, from Cadillac's fledgling team to the overall health of the series, as well as the current strength of the driver lineup.

The forthright Canadian was characteristically frank about his views on the quality of the current crop, suggesting that, given how F1 has progressed, it is easier now to race to an "acceptable" level than in seasons gone by.

"Right now, an average driver can look acceptable," the 54-year-old explained. "If you look at the past, an average driver would be two seconds off the pace, the way the cars were.

"Now, an average driver will be half a second [behind]. Okay, that's acceptable, but you meant less difference."

Villeneuve puts this development down to modern-day cars being comparatively easier to drive than the machines of yesteryear, which were often twitchy and unpredictable.

"Because of the way the cars are driven, they're very stable cars," he added to expand on his point.

The 11-time grand prix winner also underlined how, in the contemporary era, the extent of tyre management means drivers do not have to push to the limit of what they and their car are capable of.

"And also, once you get to race pace, they slow down a lot to work, to control the tyres and everything," Villeneuve said.

"So it's just a different F1 driver, different kind of cars."

A back-handed compliment

To illustrate his argument, Villeneuve compared Verstappen to the greats of a bygone generation, the 1980s and early 1990s, detailing how the Red Bull driver has less competition than over that period.

"If you look at the past, in Ayrton Senna and [Alain] Prost's era, you had five drivers like Max [Verstappen] every year," he said.

"Now you only have Max, so the playing field is... now there's a lot of good drivers, where before there were a few extremely good drivers and a bunch of good drivers. So,  think the whole scheme has changed."

The former Williams, BAR, Renault and Sauber driver was sure to compliment the four-time F1 drivers' champion, but qualified it by stating that his current dominance does not place him above great drivers from previous eras.

"Max is not better than the very good ones of the past," Villeneuve explained. "He's alone right now, so he stands out. He makes the difference.

"He is a pure racer, and there's not many of them anymore..."