Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsToro Rosso

Verstappen willing to wait for Red Bull drive

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Max Verstappen says he is willing to be patient to impress at Toro Rosso after such a swift rise through the motorsport ranks.

2014 was Verstappen's first season racing single seaters as he stepped up from karts to European F3. Verstappen impressed so much in his rookie season that Red Bull's Helmut Marko offered him a Toro Rosso race seat after a run of six consecutive victories in the middle of the season.

Now preparing for his grand prix debut in Melbourne next weekend, Verstappen told F1i during an exclusive interview he has set himself relatively modest goals for the next 12 months as he seeks to establish himself in the sport.

“Beating my team-mate, that’s number one, and trying to score a lot of points," Verstappen said. "Hopefully top five in the constructors’ championship.

“I don’t need to go to Red Bull in one year. When I feel ready then it’s possible to make the step. It shouldn't be too quick. I’m ready to build it up and go there at the right time.”

Max Verstappen: Ready to slow down at 17

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.