Max Verstappen fears Formula 1 drivers will suffer “much more” spinal damage than they have already suffered in recent years if “out of control” bumps like those at the Circuit of the Americas are not treated.
The bumpy nature of the Austin track has been a frustration for F1 drivers and their MotoGP counterparts for many years, with a major resurfacing initiative in 2022 aimed at alleviating the worst complaints.
It was also resurfaced ahead of this year’s F1 race, from the entry to Turn 9 to the entry to Turn 11, and smoothed at the entry to Turns 12 and 19, to remove bumps.
But four-time F1 world champion Verstappen – who said the circuit still felt “extremely bumpy” when the World Endurance Championship was held there last month – believes these are superficial improvements.
He suggested that if a major earthworks project is needed to reinforce the shifting soil and soil beneath the surface, then COTA should do it – even if it is a long-term undertaking.
“You can use the excuse that the floor is the problem, but you should have known better and you need to make sure you strengthen it more,” he said.
“I mean, I love this track, I love this place. It’s one of the best tracks ever. And it’s one of the best venues, best cities to be at. But for me, the bumps we have are unacceptable.
“Over time, they’ve done a little bit of work here and there, but it’s just you’re putting plaster on the big problem. And that’s what’s underneath. That’s what you really need to address in the first place.”
“But that means you really have to open the track completely. It costs a lot of money and time. But honestly, it’s the only way to get rid of them because these bumps are not natural and they are uncontrollable.”
Although Verstappen believes this track is an extreme example, he suggests it is a wider issue that F1 needs to take more seriously.
Several of the bumpiest parts of the COTA track, including at the end of the long back straight, are in braking zones in slow corners, which Verstappen says makes the current cars worse in terms of driver discomfort than their ground-effect predecessors.
At the start of the 2022-2025 rules, drivers complained about the discomfort of these stiff and low cars, especially on the straights.
However, current cars actually ride at lower ride heights in corners and can descend aggressively in braking zones as the front and rear fenders close and the car sags as downforce re-establishes and speed decreases.
“Last year you pulled about 5-6G in a corner, but I had impacts like a vertical load, which was over 9G on my spine, which I can tell you is definitely not fun,” Verstappen said.
“And above all, the older we get, the more we think about it.
“I can tell you from the checks I’ve done on my spine that the bottom doesn’t look so good.
“I know it’s part of racing, it can be part of the sport, but it’s also further damage from the cars we’ve had in recent years, and now if we continue to find that acceptable, you’re going to suffer even more.”
“And people may say there are worse sports for damaging certain body parts, but that’s why I don’t do them!”
Verstappen also found common ground with rivals George Russell and Lando Norris on this subject.
Russell suggested F1 tracks should be “repaved every two years… because we’re now going to tracks where the tarmac is going up, it’s collapsing” and causing problems.
“We’re not an Indycar or F2 car that has a reasonably high ride height. Our ride height is 10mm at the end of the straight. So any little bump, you really feel it,” he added.
“And the side profile of the tires, since we’ve been using the 18-inch, is significantly smaller. So you’ve lost all that effective suspension in the tire, which was a shock absorber that we don’t have anymore.”
Defending champion Norris said the tolerances new circuits must meet now “are pretty low” and suggested COTA “certainly doesn’t match what these current regulations are.”
“It’s pretty bad,” he said. “There are a lot of places where I have to take headache tablets before I go out, just because it’s very bumpy and you hit your head quite hard against the headrest and everything because of the bumps.
“So it’s definitely not a good thing. But there’s only so much we can do. We complain about it, so these are things we’ve talked about many times, but there’s not a lot we can complain about.”
Gn sports
