25 November 2023 , 13:39
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Jake Dennis rubbished the suggestion Red Bull creates its cars to suit Max Verstappen after getting behind the wheel of the champion's car at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Dennis, the reigning Formula E champion, has also been a Red Bull simulator driver for several years. It was through that arrangement that he got the call to drive FP1 for the team in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
Both that experience and the simulator work he does for Red Bull means he knows a lot about how the team sets up Verstappen's car. And so he is in a good place to give insight into the theory that the Dutchman benefits from a car built for him.
Speaking after his on-track session, Dennis made clear his belief that the suggestion is simply untrue. "Honestly, just jumping in the car today - obviously I don't drive F1 cars I do a lot of simulator work - but you jump in this car and it just feels completely natural," he said.
"I don't agree when people say, 'Are the cars designed for Max?' I jumped in that thing today and it felt exactly like how a race car should. It does what you want it to do, it turns the way it should turn. I think people who are often sceptical to jump to conclusions of 'This car is purely made for Max' - it's really not the case.
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"Any team goes out there to build the fastest race car possible and it's up to the driver to adjust to that. And I think that's exactly what Red Bull have done and Max, obviously the talent he is, has done that."
Verstappen has left all his Red Bull team-mates in his shadow in recent years, including Sergio Perez over the last three seasons. Before that, Alex Albon spent 18 months trying but ultimately failing to hold his own against the Dutchman.
Speaking earlier this year, the British-Thai racer fuelled the theory that the team deliberately creates its cars to suit Verstappen over his team-mates. "This isn't to throw shade at anyone at Red Bull Racing or Max or anything, honestly. But the car is set up in a unique way that is built around the lead driver, and that's Max," he said.
"And, look, I totally get why. I mean, when all is said and done, he might be the greatest driver of all time. But he has a very distinct style of driving, and he likes the car set up a certain way that's hard for a lot of drivers to sync up with. Of course, you can tinker and tweak your own car, but just the Red Bull in general is suited to Max's style."
In September, Perez's father also claimed Verstappen was getting the rub of the green. He said: "The car is set for Max because he drives with all the grip at the front and Checo has done it all the time with the grip at the back. The position Checo is in is the one he was hired for, second place."