Max Verstappen ruled out of the F1 title fight with 'fantastic' outcome explained

Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner does not believe Max Verstappen can battle for the F1 drivers' championship this season.

It is a situation the Italian feels could, however, lead to a "fantastic" outcome, as McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown will be more inclined to let Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris race each other in pursuit of title glory.

Eight rounds in to the current campaign, the Red Bull driver trails the Australian by 25 points, equivalent to a grand prix victory, but Steiner cannot see a pathway for the four-time F1 drivers' champion to add a fifth crown this year.

Norris' win at the Monaco Grand Prix means he is now a mere three points behind his team-mate and Steiner argued the two will be locked into a season-long fight for supremacy.

"I don't think the season will be decided for a long time now," he said on the Red Flags Podcast. "I also think Max.. I really cannot see him fighting for the championship anymore.

"And the other two, I think Zak [Brown] lets them race. If there's nobody coming from behind, Zak lets the two race, so I think that would be fantastic."

Verstappen 'needs to have a good Red Bull'

Verstappen, who finished fourth at the Circuit de Monaco, has won two rounds in the first third of the season, but despite moments of brilliance, Steiner does not believe the Dutchman can sustain a championship charge due to the inferior machinery he is working with.

"He will have a few ups, but he's not consistently there to win, you know," the 60-year-old explained.

"But the McLarens are always there. If you look over the races, they never have a weak weekend. They always were good.

"And sometimes, Max is Super Max, and then he can beat them, but Super Max needs to have a good Red Bull.

"And the Red Bull...I mean, in Monte Carlo, for sure, it wasn't on par with the McLarens. It was pretty far away."