Max Verstappen among 5 best F1 drivers of all time "together with Ayrton Senna, Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher," says former F1 champion

Nico Rosberg believes Max Verstappen is on the path to becoming an all-time great in F1, like Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, and Lewis Hamilton. The retired world champion was impressed with the Dutchman’s dominance and errorless driving throughout the 2022 season.

Speaking to Sport 1 Germany, the 2016 world champion said:

“Max Verstappen is simply a brilliant driver. Together with Senna, Hamilton and Schumacher, among others, the name of Max Verstappen will be on that list. That will happen soon, especially since he already has his second title in his pocket. It’s unbelievable how much talent he has and how flawless he was.”

Rosberg reckons it is only a matter of time before the Dutchman starts racking up more titles. He believes that Verstappen will claim more than two titles in his career.

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Nico Rosberg is impressed with Max Verstappen in 2022

The former Mercedes champion believes that Max Verstappen has a strong mindset quite similar to Senna and Schumacher.

Speaking to Italian publication La Gazetta Dello Sport, Rosberg said:

“He has the fighting mentality just like Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna and he doesn't make mistakes anymore. No team-mate has been able to keep up with him and we are talking about Pierre Gasly and Sergio Perez, who are not exactly bad drivers."

Noting that he is flawless at outperforming his teammates, Rosberg was impressed with the demeanor in which the Dutchman turned the tables over the course of the season.

The Red Bull champion started the season with two retirements and was 46 points behind Charles Leclerc. However, he went on to lead the championship by almost 100 points before heading into the summer break.

"Verstappen has blown my mind this year. He [had] a bad start to the season and Ferrari was superior at the time. He then went on to have a historic season with a [record-breaking] total of 15, victories, with relatively few pole positions (seven), often winning by moving forward. He will always be among the best five drivers."

He added:

"Certainly, he has won two world titles at the age of 25, and has already won more races than Fernando Alonso. He has enormous talent and is now complete.”

At the age of 25, Max Verstappen has claimed two titles and broken the record for the most wins in a season by claiming 15 victories. The Dutchman also went on to set a new record for scoring the maximum number of points in a season with 454. He beat Hamilton’s record of finishing the 2019 season with a total of 413 points.

By Rosberg’s assessment, the Dutchman will be one of the top five drivers in the history of the sport if he continues his flawless performance streak.