"It has been bad for a very long time": Max Verstappen delves deeper on the issue of spray from the new generation of cars

Max Verstappen believes there is not much that can be done to improve the spray on the new generation cars in wet weather.

Speaking to media including Sportskeeda at the 2023 Belgian GP, the Dutchman felt the poor visibility is making wet weather racing or races in the rain a rarity.

Asked by Sportskeeda what could be done to improve the spray of the cars or improve wet weather driving, Max Verstappen said:

"We went to the bigger tyres, that makes it worse, because there is more displacement. Yeah just shape of the car is so big, you have more spray. It was worse than it was in 2016. In 2016 it was also bad. I remembered the race in Brazil, I was at the back of the race after the pitstop. I didn’t see Fernando spinning off the track, the whole straight I kept it flat but I didn’t see anything.

"But of course by knowing where you’re going because of all the other laps, you keep it thin but if it would have been someone standing, you would have straight driven through it. So its bad but it has been bad for a very long time. I don’t think there is a lot at the moment we couldn’t do about it.”

Asked if there is a risk of losing wet racing, the Dutchman replied:

“There is not much you can do about it really.“

On whether he would like to see minimal wet weather racing, Max Verstappen replied:

“No, but I mean its also very different if you are P1, P2 or in P15, where the visibility is a lot worse. Of course then you have to back off and then you also have a big gap, so it’s also probably a bit of risk management in that sense.”

Known for his mastery in wet weather conditions, Max Verstappen has always been vocal about the poor visibility and spray of the cars that affects the experience.

The Dutchman reckons there is not much that can be done to the new generation cars to reduce the spray, because of their size and the larger tyres.

Reflecting upon his 2016 Brazilian GP performance where he surged from last to second on the grid, the reigning world champion claimed he relied on pure instinct and judgement because of the poor visibility.

While he rues the possibility of losing wet weather racing, the Red Bull champion felt it is a possibility because the visibility varies from the front of the grid to the back.

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Max Verstappen defends the Spa circuit but feels there can be improvements

Max Verstappen believes a lot can be done to make racing safer, but it is unfortunate two incidents happened at the Spa-Francorchamps.

While he felt both accidents of Anthoine Hubert and Dilano van ’t Hoff were extremely unfortunate, he feels at times the low visibility just puts the driver in an odd spot. Compared to Spa, the Dutchman feels Monaco is a more dangerous layout but has been made safe to race.

Asked about the discussions regarding the track layout and how it can be improved, Verstappen said:

“Yes there are always things that can be done but we are also racing in Monaco, which is way more dangerous than here. We race there because it is deemed safe enough. Accidents happen unfortunately, if you look back, of course the accidents when they happen, it is just extremely unfortunate, the way it happened.

He continued:

"I don't think there is a lot that you can do, change for it to be a lot safer. There are other tracks where if you have a crash and you are back on the track, there is very low visibility and then it can happen again. It’s also a bit unlucky as well that it happens at Spa. Probably two times now.”

The accidents at Spa which claimed the lives of Hubert in 2019 and van ’t Hoff in 2023 have sparked a discussion to improve the safety standards at the Belgian circuit. After the incident in 2009, a part of the green forest foliage around Kemmel straight was cut down to avoid the water logging on that part of the circuit.

Max Verstappen had also criticised the race management in van ’t Hoff’s case where he felt the event should not have been restarted after the incident.