Brundle calls Verstappen the man to beat after Red Bull’s late-season surge

Martin Brundle sees Max Verstappen as Formula 1’s man to beat in the closing stretch of the season. The former F1 driver says Red Bull’s rapid development of its car and engine has impressed him, and that the progress came faster than he expected.

Verstappen has won in Malaysia and Singapore; in Singapore, he was virtually unchallenged over the sprint weekend. Brundle says the Dutchman is in excellent form, looks happy and can still find one or two tenths from the car.

Brundle’s comparison with Kimi Antonelli came with a condition: if Verstappen had been closer to Antonelli in the points, Brundle said, he could have put him under the same pressure as Lando Norris in 2025.

Brundle also pointed to possible challenges. Ferrari looked quick, McLaren was upbeat about upgrades still to come, and Mercedes believed it could make an earlier upgrade work despite it not having worked particularly well before.

Brundle expects an exciting end to the season. He recalled that some of the best races he had witnessed came after a championship was settled, when everyone went all out.