Max Verstappen’s suggestion of ‘passport bias’ in F1 has been brushed aside by six-time Grand Prix winner Riccardo Patrese, who accused the reigning world champion of ‘whinging’. The Dutchman has made it clear that he thinks he is unfairly treated by the British press.
The 27-year-old’s frustrations were a regular topic of conversation during his title fight with Lewis Hamilton in 2021, and they resurfaced last year when Verstappen started to fight McLaren’s Lando Norris on a regular basis. “Sometimes in racing situations, or battles, or certain penalties, and the way people look at success and how much credit they give you or not, I definitely feel that there is a bias,” Verstappen said after a remarkable victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix last year.
“The problem in F1 is that 80 to 85 per cent of the media is British. And I did feel that some things which were written about me were not fair. I am not going to sit here and single out one broadcaster, but I just had to laugh about what was said. I was like: ‘Whatever.’”
According to former Williams and Benetton driver Patrese, however, Verstappen doesn’t have a case. “I don’t agree with him,” he told Listofsweepstakescasinos.com. “[He is not criticised] because of his passport. If [James Hunt was] Dutch, I don’t think he gave any trouble during his career. I think the fact [is] that he’s special and opens the right doors at the right moment, and he could use all the opportunities he could have.
“Sometimes with these rules, he doesn’t agree, but I don’t think it’s because he’s Dutch instead of English. Champions usually like whinging a little bit. I know very well it’s because I had Nigel [Mansell] in the team that he was winging all the time!”
Despite Patrese’s scepticism, Verstappen enjoys the support of his team behind his media approach. Red Bull boycotted Sky Sports F1 interviews at the Mexican Grand Prix in 2022 following Ted Kravitz’s comment suggesting Hamilton was “robbed” of the 2021 crown, and the four-time world champion has showcased a short fuse when his driving standards have been questioned in 2025.
Verstappen has been backed by former Red Bull aerodynamics guru, Adrian Newey, too. “I think from the outside, I’m not sure people fully appreciate and understand Max, just like they didn’t with Sebastian [Vettel],” he told the High Performance podcast. “First of all, there’s this sort of demonisation both of them suffered at times, which I think is very unfair, and maybe that’s also a little bit of the British media, if I’m honest.
“Sky have a huge influence around the world, their viewing is truly international, but their coverage is quite nationalistic, dare I say, and that can have an influence. It’s this thing that now with journalism, typically, there is that trend to sort of either put people on a pedestal or knock them down.”