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We are here at the Detroit Auto Show with four time Formula One champion Max. For stapp and Max, the second half of last season was about as exciting as they get. You were at a one hundred and four point deficit but ended up only missing out by two points in the last race.
How did it feel to you take it raise race?
To be honest, you know, we had a bit of a tough yeah for us alf A. You know, some good moments and some bad moments and a bit of a yeah, tough start, but second half is a lot more enjoyable.
Yeah.
Also in the team side, like you know, you you start to feel more comfortable confident when things are are going well. Of course, even in the second half we had a few tough races, but overall way more competitive, and I think it's always nicer to have to end the season like that.
I mean, it was a great way to end, even if you know you didn't win the ultimate championship. But I can't imagine working that hard with that set of tools and then having to switch to a completely new set of tools this year in like this most serious rule change that Formula One has had, at least in my memory.
Yeah, but I mean you know that even heading into that season, right, so it's not like it comes as a shock. The team is prepared for that, and it's also a bit of a new challenge. I mean, I enjoyed the cars the last three years, but at the same time, sometimes, yeah, it doesn't doesn't hurt to have a bit of a change, yet it can also really upset of course the grit you don't know, so uh, yeah, we'll see how that how that goes.
How do you think the rule changes are going to benefit you as opposed to the rest of the group.
I honestly have no idea.
I haven't even done that many laps in the simulator, you know, So for me, I'll just see what happens when I sit in the car.
I think what is always very important as the drivers.
That you can adapt quickly to the situation that you're in, if if that is on a earn cardit you've known for a long time, or a completely new car. You just need to be able to, Yeah, dub quickly learn quickly as well, because the cars will evolve I think also very quickly. But yeah, I'm not too stressed about that, to be honest, I.
Mean Red Bull is seen as the most at least the most technologically advanced team in the world, and now you have Ford as a partner. I don't think any CEO automotive CEO cares about racing more than Jim Farley. What does it mean to you working with Ford?
Yeah, it's great, it's a great opportunity as well.
I'm just excited, you know, to get started.
There's a massive heritage as well, you know in racing as well. So yeah, I think everyone is just now just very keen to get started.
Yeah. I think like of the former winners that have been powered by Ford, Jim Clark, Hill, Fit Appaldy, I mean, Jackie Stewart, Like, it's such an illustrious list. It's almost like you're gonna do DFV two point zero with this new team.
Let's see. I mean, yeah, we hope, of course to have a lot of success, but it's impossible to know.
The only thing that I do know is that everyone is giving it everything they have.
What do you think about the development We've heard that maybe you have a bit found a bit of an edge with compression variable compression. I guess there's going to be a meeting on January second about how this will work for you and Mercedes. Do you feel like you have an edge?
It's impossible to know. I mean everyone is just trying everything they can. And from our.
Side, and especially for my side, I mean I have to focus on the driving. You know, I'm not there to be the engine technician, and we'll explain everything in detail to you. And at the end of the day, it's also something between the FIA and the car manufacturers, to the engine manufacturers to to sort out. And I drive the car and I trust that from our side, you know, we always try to do our very best to get the most performance out of the engine.
Are you excited to have more nimble a smaller, more nimble car. Is that more exciting for you because it'll be easier I guess than that instance to pass.
I mean it's a bit too soon to be able to say that that it will be easier to pass. I have no idea, so you know, everything is still unknown, you know. So the cars I think look a bit nicer, you know, when they're a bit smaller and not as wide. But yeah, once we get on track, then it's a bit easier to get a bit of an understanding of what is all happening and going on.
Let's talk about your career outside of F one. I can hear the sims going over there, and I know you're deep into that with Redline. So what are you most interested in outside of racing on the track, which I'm sure is your main focus almost all the time, but in any spare time that you have.
You mean, outside of like sim racing and stuff. It's, of course we want to win whatever we compete in, right, I want to try and help young drivers, young people that don't have the opportunities also in real life, you know, to have an opportunity to actually then become a real racing driver.
All starts of course in the simulator.
And yeah, it's just very exciting to see these young guys that you know, start at what sixteen maybe in the team and see them grow as well over the years with the potential to you know, maybe get a real real life drive, which we have done last season with one of the sim drivers and you know, he's doing a really good job, and it's just, yeah, really nice to see how that is all like progressing.
Do you think about that as a progression? I mean, do you have, for example, a certain number of championships in mind that you want to win before you can walk away, or are you still going to be starting races at you know, Alonzo's like forty four years old. Can you see that as a future for yourself.
It's all honestly, like, it's just I don't really think about it too much. I think it's more important to just try and enjoy it, you know, it's on the enjoyment is there, then it's also easier to rock up and really demand everything from yourself.
And so far, I'm still you know, having that feeling.
You seem to be enjoying a little bit of GT racing, maybe ready to do a.
Little bit of endurance race.
I hear you get signed up for the twenty four hours of Nurburg.
Well about that, there's still nothing confirmed yet.
I mean the plan would be nice, you know, if that's possible, but it's also very you know, very hectic first few months now in Formula one, so we.
Have to wait and see.
But it's definitely my goal, you know, I want to do with twenty five races and I want to do endurance and of course having started with GD three racing as well with the team.
Yeah, that's definitely the future plan.
Are you just aiming for an outright win at Lamar or do you think about, for example, the Triple Crown. Is that something that enters the picture.
Triple Crown not so much for me personally. Yeah, I would love to do Lamon and actually if you do it, you want you want to try and win it.
So in terms of my co anchor, Danny Berger, she's a huge F one fan and she wants to know if you're still friends with Lando.
Yeah, I mean that's that does never change. So it's just always.
Been the a little spicy at the end of the last season.
Spicy, but it is also a bit of fun, you know in it.
You know, it's just being being like that, and obviously also the medium the media makes it always, uh, probably a bit more spicy than it actually accidents