Max Verstappen reminds Jenson Button of Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher in how he dominates his teammates in Formula 1.
Since debuting in 2015, only Daniel Ricciardo (twice) has managed to beat the Dutchman over the course of a full season, but as he gained experience at Red Bull, Max gradually stamped his authority over the Australian, beating him by 79 points in 2018, something many believe drove Ricciardo to Renault.
Then, over the past two years, neither Pierre Gasly nor Alex Albon have come close to challenging Verstappen and it is the considerable pace advantage he has which most impresses the 2009 world champion.
“You compare him to his teammates the last two years, he has just annihilated them,” said Button on the In the Fast Lane podcast.
“I haven’t seen that in motorsport for a very long time, probably back to the Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher days.
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“I don’t think there’s been a driver that’s annihilated their teammate like he has in a very long time.
“He is doing an exceptional job. I would love to see him go up against Lewis [Hamilton] in a championship fight.
“Those two, top of their game, it’s what we all want to see. Is it ever going to happen? I don’t know.”
However, while his unchallenged status as Red Bull’s No.1 is obvious, Jenson, who now pundits for Sky Sports, sees a downside to the lack of competition he faces from across the garage.
“It’s tough for [Max], because now he doesn’t have a competitive teammate,” Button explained.
“He’s out on his own. He’s probably not able to progress as much because his teammate isn’t where he is at, in terms of pace.
“When your teammate is half a second off you, which [Albon] normally is, you don’t tend to listen to his set-up changes and his set-up work.
“You’re basically a one-car team. It’s tougher.”
The other issue for the 22-year-old is, while he is clearly the only realistic challenger Mercedes has, any chance of beating them remains a relative long-shot.
“[Max] looks to the Mercedes, and I think it frustrates him,” the former Honda, Brawn GP and McLaren driver said.
“Silverstone was awesome, what a great result, but then in Barcelona you can hear the frustration in his voice on the radio.
“He just can’t challenge them because he doesn’t have the car underneath him.
“It’s tough for him, but he’s just got to do the best job he can with the car he has.”
