Max Verstappen compares himself to Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel

Max Verstappen

Verstappen compares himself to Hamilton and Vettel

Agree with Max?

Matthew Scott

Sunday 25 August 2019 14:32

Max Verstappen feels he is more aligned with Sebastian Vettel than Lewis Hamilton when it comes to offering fans a glimpse into his life away from the race track.

Although Verstappen is a regular presence on social media, with over four million followers across multiple platforms, very few posts revolve around topics other than racing.

Hamilton, with over 22 million followers on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, regularly shares snippets of his every-day life and views on world matters, helping to grow his personal brand into the global force it is today.

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That is in sharp contrast to Sebastian Vettel, who has never held a social media count and regularly eschews questions about his private life. The German's private life is so well guarded that he managed to get married between this year's Canadian and French Grands Prix with little known about it until he arrived in the Paul Ricard paddock wearing a wedding ring.

Although he is unlikely to withdraw from online platforms, Verstappen admires Vettel's commitment to privacy.

"Lewis is of a different generation," Verstappen told De Telegraaf.

"That's just how I am. I think I lean more towards the Vettel side than, say, the Lewis side.

"I'm more and more experienced in what I do or do not have to say about my private life.

"Everyone makes their own choices. Lewis is also from another generation. I don't see him step into a simulator as quickly as he gets home."

Verstappen races online, often with McLaren's Lando Norris, whenever the chance arises, but he says extra-curricular racing is something that has been a constant in his life.

"I can still remember it from my time in karts," he said. "Back then I had a busy racing weekend, but then we still went indoor or rental karting in the evening. Just to be a little crazy.

"That is no different now with sim-racing. Certainly in the training you can also play around and fight with each other. In Formula 1, the differences in cars are of course greater than there."