Verstappen: Alonso would have won F1 titles in ‘other people’s’ cars

The Red Bull driver is set to join Alonso on two F1 championships by winning his second world title this year, a feat he could achieve as early as this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix. 

Alonso also won his first two F1 titles in successive fashion but has since failed to add to his trophy haul, narrowly missing out on further world championships due to combination of bad luck and ill-fated career moves. 

Speaking to media on Thursday, Alonso said he hoped Verstappen would fare better in his career and believes a second world championship will make the Dutchman, who turns 25 on Friday, an all-time great. 

Verstappen responded by suggesting that Alonso would have many more titles under his belt had he enjoyed a spell of domination like Sebastian Vettel, who won four consecutive titles with Red Bull from 2010-2013, and Lewis Hamilton, who claimed six of his seven world titles while driving for Mercedes between 2014 and 2020. 

“It's not bad,” said Verstappen about the prospect of matching Alonso’s total of F1 career wins (32), which he will hit if he takes his 12th win from 17 races this season in Singapore.

“In F1, you need a bit of luck, and you need to have the luck that you make the right decision and then have a dominant car for a long time. 

“Because I mean, obviously, if you would have put Fernando in the cars where other people have won championships with, he would have done the same. But that's not how F1 works. 

“At the end of the day, he still won two titles so I think he's done very well for himself. And he's also a great guy and a great personality for F1.” 

Winning title in Singapore ‘a long shot’ 

Verstappen, who holds a 116-point lead over Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, will be crowned champion in Singapore if he wins the race and his rivals score lowly.

However, mathematically, it is not very likely to happen. That is something Verstappen acknowledges, insisting he is not focused on the prospect of securing the 2022 title this weekend. 

“I don't really think about it,” he stressed. “It's quite a long shot. I just want to enjoy the weekend, and of course, try to win it.” 

Asked if it would be nice to get the job done early, Verstappen replied: “I think Japan is nicer. Also, I need a lot of luck for it to happen here, so I don’t really count on it…

“I think [Suzuka will be] my first proper opportunity to win the title. So I’m looking forward to Singapore right now, but I’m also very excited for next week.”