The latest soundbite from new Sky Sports pundit Karun Chandhok concerns Max Verstappen and his now World Championship-winning credentials.
Verstappen, who recently observed the stewards at the Marrakech E-Prix as part of his public service order issued by the FIA for pushing Esteban Ocon, is being tipped for a title tilt in 2019.
And Chandhok believes the Dutchman now finds himself in a similar position to how Lewis Hamilton was in 2008 when winning first Formula 1 crown.
“I think Max has now matured enough and he’s ready to be world champion,” Chandhok said at Autosport International.
“He’s like Lewis was in 2008, he’s ready to be fighting for the world championship and put together a season-long campaign.
“It’s whether Honda can deliver for Red Bull.”
Chandhok is encouraged by Honda’s progress and stressed just how important it is for the Japanese manufacturer to succeed in Formula 1.
“There were signs of Honda starting to get it together if you look at the back end of last year, they introduced an engine upgrade for Toro Rosso in Suzuka that really seemed to make a step forward,” Chandhok added.
“We saw more evidence about it in Austin and know Red Bull are very optimistic about it. If they can deliver I think that’s great for F1.
If we can have Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull, potentially six cars fighting it out, that’s exactly what we all want to see.
“F1 needs Honda to be successful because then it means Red Bull will be successful and we’ll have three teams competing at the front. That’s really important.”
Source: Read Full Article