Max Verstappen has mocked Netflix’s Drive To Survive series after being portrayed as “very sad” after his defeat in last season’s Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.
The fly-on-the-wall documentary series, which has just released its seventh season, has previously been accused of distorting or exaggerating particular moments within F1.
In Episode 2, footage shows Lando Norris, the winner of the race, celebrating with his team and speaking to his family on the phone, before the shot cuts to one of Verstappen, appearing miserable, as former F1 champion Jenson Button states that the Dutchman “would be in a bad place right now”.
Speaking on a Twitch stream broadcast over the weekend, Verstappen took aim at the show, giving his insight into what really happened in the aftermath of the race.
“Apparently I was very sad after Miami,” he said. “I literally had the best time ever Sunday night, so I don’t know what I was upset about.
“Probably better not say anything.”
Verstappen’s long-running issue with DTS
Verstappen has not been shy in offering an opinion on the series before, and has criticised its overly-dramatised nature.
He said in 2023 that while he was “positive [about the show] of course, because I know it’s also very important for Formula 1,” he raised concerns about the way many are portrayed in the show, concluding it was the reason he did not want to feature himself in the interview segments on the show.
Verstappen doubled-down on this view recently, telling The Project: “You don’t really see a lot of me in Drive to Survive because I don’t like doing it.
“So yeah, you probably don’t get the right side of me because it’s just an interview. I’m just sitting down in a dark room, and I hate that!”
The reigning World Champion also took issue with the show for its depiction of the relationship between Norris and Daniel Ricciardo, when the pair were team-mates at McLaren.
In scenes that gave the impression there was an underlying tension between them, Verstappen told BBC Sport: “I watched two episodes, but I was not very impressed. It’s just not my thing, faking rivalries.”
READ MORE – F1 Drive to Survive Season 7 Review: Emotions rise in Episodes 5 & 6
