Max Verstappen has warned his large legion of fans to watch their drink at the 2023 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix.
The reigning world champion often has a huge following to European races, especially those within a reasonable distance of the Netherlands such as Belgium, Austria and, of course, his home race at Zandvoort.
He wants his supporters to enjoy the race rather than getting “too drunk” but he is not as chirpy about his potential to win another race at the Red Bull Ring.
“At a sprint weekend, so many things can go well or go wrong,” Verstappen told the media ahead of the Austrian GP. “It’s always very hectic.
“I guess we’ll just find out and we can speculate about it now but we’ll only find out on Sunday.”
When asked if he had a message for his fans at the track this weekend, Verstappen said: “Don’t get too drunk. Just watch the race and enjoy it.”
Racing without Mateschitz
This year’s Austrian GP will be the first since the passing of Dietrich Mateschitz who was a pivotal part of the Red Bull company and the F1 team itself.
Verstappen, though, does not see this race feeling any different to previous Austrian races having already been to several events in the calendar without Mateschitz’s presence.
“We’ve had already a few Grand Prix without Dietrich by our side,” Verstappen added. “You just have to deal with it and we also race to make him proud.
“Coming here to the team’s home Grand Prix, we always enjoy coming here anyway and we want to win.”
