Max Verstappen wants to ‘throw bananas’ at rivals and blasts Monaco GP | F1 | Sport
Max Verstappen has hit out at the Formula One bigwigs, claiming you “can’t race” on the Monaco Grand Prix track. The reigning world champion finished fourth in Monaco, losing more ground to the runaway McLaren duo in the Drivers’ Championship race.
Verstappen now sits 22 points behind leader Oscar Piastri, who finished one spot ahead of the Dutchman in the principality. Ferrari‘s Charles Leclerc picked up second in his home race, with Lando Norris taking his first-ever Monaco Grand Prix victory, converting the pole position he’d earned in qualifying on Saturday.
It was the first Monaco Grand Prix since a mandatory two-stop pit rule was introduced, with Verstappen falling foul of the format change and being forced to pit for a second time during the final lap. Dropping three places following his final pit stop, the Red Bull man didn’t hold back when asked about the decision during his post-race debrief.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Verstappen said: “You can’t race here so it doesn’t matter what you do. One stop, 10 stops. Even at the end I was in the lead and my tyres were completely gone and you still can’t pass. I think nowadays with an F1 car you can just about pass an F2 car around here. I don’t think it has worked [the new rule].”
Asked if the solution would be to bring the pit stops into a specific window, Verstappen, with his tongue firmly in his cheek, added: “Then we would be doing Mario Kart. Then we have to install bits on the car so we can throw bananas around and a slippery surface. I could have done four stops and still been in the same position but that’s Monaco for you.”
Championship-chaser Norris had a different reading of things though, with the Englishman dubbing the race “fun”. He stated: “It feels amazing. It’s a long, gruelling race, but good fun. We could push for much of the race. The last quarter was stressful with Leclerc behind and Max ahead, but we won in Monaco. This is what I dreamed of when I was a kid, so I achieved one of my dreams.
“The worst bit was the end. I felt quite under control the whole race but Max was backing it up a little bit and I knew Charles had opportunities. I tried to back off Max so I could push when I needed to. I’m very happy, my team are very happy. Therefore we’re going to have a wonderful night!”
With it looking like it will be a straight shootout between the two McLaren drivers for the title, it’s all eyes on Barcelona next week for the ninth race of the 2025 campaign. It’s the final Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with a new street circuit in Madrid set to be introduced from 2026 onwards.
