27 September 2023 , 19:50
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A racing star feels IndyCar champion Alex Palou is a "more complete" driver than Formula 1's unstoppable force Max Verstappen.
The Dutchman has won 13 of 16 races so far this season and is on his way to his third consecutive championship. So dominant he has been that his title is just a few points away, even though six full race weekends remain in the 2023 season.
His incredibly fast Red Bull car has played a part in his dominance. But even his team-mate Sergio Perez has accrued only a little over half as many points as Verstappen.
But the Dutchman is not the only racing driver head and shoulders above his rivals in a top-tier racing series. Across the pond, Palou has cemented his status as the leading light in IndyCar.
With five wins and 13 top-five finishes in a series with more competition at the top, the Spaniard secured the 2023 title by 78 points. And it was his second title in three years – secured against the backdrop of off-track legal issues with McLaren.
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Having raced against Palou and witnessed his skill first-hand, fellow IndyCar racer Agustin Canapino feels he is in a league of his own. "Palou is outstanding because, for me, he is the best driver in the world, in my opinion," he told Fox Sports Argentina.
"If he is not the best, he is among the three best. In my opinion, Palou is more complete than Verstappen. What Palou does in IndyCar for me is really like being an extra-terrestrial. But it is a very subjective opinion.
"Verstappen is another alien too. Don't let Verstappen's followers criticise me because I have Verstappen in limbo too but, for me, the fact of racing on ovals makes IndyCar drivers different because the oval is the absolute extreme and F1 doesn't have that.
"That's why, for me, a driver like Palou, who sets the standard difference in all types of circuits, in all types of disciplines, makes him an extra-terrestrial." It comes after ex-F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone named Verstappen as "the best driver ever".
"I used to say Alain Prost – now I would say Max," he told the Daily Mail. "He's the greatest. He is brightest with regards to getting the best out of the car. He doesn't muck around. He gets right on the programme. In my list, he is above Lewis Hamilton.
"Lewis is obviously super-super bright, super-super talented. Lewis understands people and gets the best out of them, whereas Max gets the best out of the car. He's very different from Max. When Lewis stops racing, he can get into a different world – entertainment or whatever – but that won't be the way Max could go."