Max Verstappen quizzed about Alpine boss Flavio Briatore's admiration of the Red Bull driver

Red Bull star Max Verstappen was questioned on whether he's aware of Alpine boss Flavio Briatore's comments from last week. The Dutchman shared that he was aware of the same, and when told about it, he delivered a cheeky statement in response.

Verstappen is arguably the fastest driver on the grid at the moment, and pushes the car beyond its limit. The Dutchman won the championship in 2024 with the RB20, which was marginally slower than the McLaren after the 2024 Miami GP upgrade.

The McLarens have bolted away with a dominant car since the start of the 2025 season, yet Verstappen has somewhat been able to remain in touch with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the drivers' championship. The McLaren drivers have won seven of the first nine races, with the Dutchman winning the other two.

F1 Grand Prix of Spain - Source: Getty

Flavio Briatore sat with Le Monde for an interview and was questioned on whom he saw as Alpine's lead driver while answering questions about the 2026 car and the expectations. Briatore said:

“The easiest way to win is to sign Max Verstappen, but we can't. So we have to work with what we've got.”

He was later questioned if Pierre Gasly was a top-tier driver, to which he replied:

“For me, there's Verstappen at the top and, behind him, Pierre, Charles [Leclerc] and a few others. Speed, you either have it or you don't. Pierre has it.”

Verstappen, during an interview with Viaplay, was asked whether he was awarded for Flavio Briatore's comments about him. The Dutchman denied having any knowledge, and it was then revealed what the Alpine boss had said about him. The Red Bull star had a cheeky reply for the same as he said (via Planet F1):

“Yeah. That'll cost pennies for Alpine.”

Max Verstappen has been rumored to leave Red Bull, with reports suggesting that both Mercedes and Aston Martin have made offers to the four-time F1 champion.

Flavio Briatore would like to have ‘two Max Verstappens’ as his driver lineup

Alpine boss Flavio Briatore also sat down for an interview with Corriere Della Sera. The Italian was questioned about whom he thought was the greatest driver of all time, to which he replied:

“I don’t know about of all time, because we’ve had Schumacher, Senna, Alonso... Right now, the number one is definitely Max Verstappen.”

The interviewer followed up on the question and asked Briatore which drivers he would like to have in the Alpine lineup. He replied:

“Two Verstappens — because I’ve got two cars.”

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff reportedly was all hands on deck in his attempt to sign Verstappen for the Silver Arrows amid the unrest at Red Bull following the Christian Horner controversy. Rumors also suggest that Aston Martin has made a $300M offer to Verstappen's camp for a three-year contract.

Edited by Tushar Bahl