Michael Masi contacted Max Verstappen to express his gratitude for Max’s support for the fired F1 Race Director.
As the dismissed FIA Race Director keeps a low profile in the midst of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix incident, Michael Masi appreciated the very public support from Max Verstappen.
Masi’s three-year reign as F1 Race Director has come to an end, with Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich sharing the top role for the 2022 season.
Masi’s removal, which came as a result of the FIA’s inquiry into the controversial race in Abu Dhabi in which Masi’s decision-making was a crucial factor in the World Championship’s outcome, has been welcomed with widespread support, with Verstappen being among the most vocal.
Masi was “thrown under a bus by the FIA,” according to the 2021 World Champion, who added that the Race Director “never got the opportunity” to have more people around him.
Masi thanked Verstappen for his compliments.
“He appreciated my message. He got a few more,” Verstappen told UK publication The Daily Mail.
“It was very fresh for him. I have had my moments with the stewards but, at the end of the day, you have to have respect for each other. You don’t always have to agree.
“The aim is to make the racing better, more exciting but also fair.”
Verstappen: My ‘desperate’ desire to win is no longer there
After winning his first World Championship in Abu Dhabi, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko believes Verstappen will be an even more formidable opponent in 2022 now that he is free of the pressure of expectation that has around him since he began racing as a brilliant 17-year-old.
Verstappen has stated that now that he has accomplished his life’s goal of winning an F1 championship, he is more comfortable about the upcoming. The Dutch racer officially signed a lucrative contract extension with Red Bull, which would keep him with the Milton Keynes-based team until 2028.
“I will always want to win,” he said.
“But the desperate ‘must win’ [attitude] is gone. It doesn’t mean I am less motivated. I have the same level of motivation, maybe more, to do it again.
“It feels nice. It is a relaxation. There is less of a rush. I was already in my seventh season. I had never really had a shot at the title before. I had my first chance and, of course, I wanted desperately to do it. Winning a championship is one of those things that doesn’t happen often. It may never happen again, who knows?”
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F1, F1 2022, Formula 1, Grand Prix, Max Verstappen, Michael Masi, Red Bull