Yesterday at 07:25
Jos Verstappen has been described as "a pure, pure thug", but has
additionally been praised for raising "a giant" and "the biggest
beast" in Formula 1 in Max Verstappen. Verstappen Sr is known to
have brought up his son the hard way, turning him into a ruthless
driver who has gone on to become a four-time F1 champion. Whatever
Verstappen Sr's style of parenting, it has reaped its rewards, as
viewed by a close friend of both men, Gino Rosato, who was a
long-serving managerial figure at Ferrari for over two decades, and
inside F1 for more than 30 years. Rosato said that he remembers the
Verstappens more during their early days in the paddock than they
will remember him, but over time their friendship has grown.
Speaking on the Pitstop podcast, that relationship allowed Rosato
to claim Jos is "a pure, pure thug". He added: "Don't fuck around
with Jos. He's a pure guy. He's an honest guy. It's old school, and
what are you gonna tell him? 'You did bad?' "He created the biggest
beast on the face of Formula 1, or one of them, for sure. "You put
s**t in the garden, the flowers grow, and he made a gentleman. He
made a great driver. But with old work ethics. "Jos, he would leave
Max sometimes on the race track, racing and all that, and I think
this is what this world has lost a little now. "When I see people
being parents today, they're just babying all the time. And, 'Oh,
what does he need?' "Jos doesn't come from that school. [He would
say] 'F**king figure it out. Let's go. You want to be the best?
This is what it takes'. "Not only did he create this phenomenal
driver, [a] giant, and I use the word giant very little, but when I
say the word 'giant', you know...but as a person, he's as nice as
the father." Rosato, who is also godfather to Robin Raikkonen, the
son of 2007 F1 champion Kimi, feels the Verstappens are very
straight people and that Max should be proud of Jos' input
throughout his life and career. As for Jos, he should ignore those
who have dared to criticise him for his way of being a father.
"When you're on the top, they're all aiming at you," he said. "You
did this. They're all looking for particulars, but, let's be
honest, in the last...after Michael [Schumacher], he's been the
best driver hands down. "But then you see them off track. I'm not
getting paid by anybody to say this, but it is what it is, and
after 32 years in the business, you've seen them all. Some get
mixed up, some start going in all directions. "Max, it's pure. He
is extremely similar to Kimi. He's a bit more spicy, a bit more
open-minded. Kimi will suffer in silence and lash out once in a
while. "But I could text Max right now, and he's going to answer me
back within two minutes. That's the same thing with Jos. They're
not measuring people by the money you're going to bring, or who you
are. "They're not subconsciously playing the game backwards.
They're just genuinely like that. [They are] pure nice people doing
their job, creating a family story, with a father helping out a
kid, teaching the kid, 'This is the real world'."
