Coming off the back of your maiden victory in Formula 1 must feel special for any driver, whether they're 18 or not - yet reality came calling for Max Verstappen over the weekend in Monaco. Two crashes within two days wouldn't do wonders for anybody's confidence, but this, along with the sceptics chastising his 'promotion' to Red Bull, along with last year's, incident, with Grosjean could mean the youngest race winner in F1 must have some tough mental battles to overcome.
I have always strongly believed in Verstappen's ability, and, I, like many, see him as a future champion, but it is hard to ignore his bad luck so far in Monaco. This doesn't make me doubt his talent and driving in the slightest, as, after all, other driver's have circuits that never seem to quite work for them, such as Hamilton in Hungary or 'Crashtor' Maldonado in most places. But it does make me wonder if the young driver will have psychological issues there in the future. Of course, part of Formula 1, or any sport for that matter, is getting over any failures and focussing on the job in hand, and I don't doubt that this is what Verstappen will try hard to do. But, could the crash on Sunday have been an accumulation of last year and Saturday? For a driver who is normally so cool and collected, with the exception of a few spats with Sainz, it seems odd that he judged it so badly wrong on both occasions.
Right now, Verstappen needs to look forwards to Canada, and proving that Monaco was just a blip, which I sincerely hope he does. But what happened last weekend will undoubtedly be at the back of his mind, and by the time next year's race in Monaco comes around, the eyes of the media and supporters will all be on him, to see if he can finish what he started. The pressure will always now be on at Monaco for Verstappen, and, I, as a fan, hope that he can overcome any qualms he may have at the circuit, so that he can show his raw racing talent there, and prove to anybody who doubts his ability that he is a hugely capable driver, who simply just had some bad luck and nerves at the world famous circuit.
I have always strongly believed in Verstappen's ability, and, I, like many, see him as a future champion, but it is hard to ignore his bad luck so far in Monaco. This doesn't make me doubt his talent and driving in the slightest, as, after all, other driver's have circuits that never seem to quite work for them, such as Hamilton in Hungary or 'Crashtor' Maldonado in most places. But it does make me wonder if the young driver will have psychological issues there in the future. Of course, part of Formula 1, or any sport for that matter, is getting over any failures and focussing on the job in hand, and I don't doubt that this is what Verstappen will try hard to do. But, could the crash on Sunday have been an accumulation of last year and Saturday? For a driver who is normally so cool and collected, with the exception of a few spats with Sainz, it seems odd that he judged it so badly wrong on both occasions.
Right now, Verstappen needs to look forwards to Canada, and proving that Monaco was just a blip, which I sincerely hope he does. But what happened last weekend will undoubtedly be at the back of his mind, and by the time next year's race in Monaco comes around, the eyes of the media and supporters will all be on him, to see if he can finish what he started. The pressure will always now be on at Monaco for Verstappen, and, I, as a fan, hope that he can overcome any qualms he may have at the circuit, so that he can show his raw racing talent there, and prove to anybody who doubts his ability that he is a hugely capable driver, who simply just had some bad luck and nerves at the world famous circuit.
