Zak Brown’s claim that Max Verstappen only wins because Red Bull has the fastest car came back to haunt him as Verstappen landed a telling blow live on TV after beating Lando Norris for the 2024 world title .

Verstappen won his fourth consecutive Drivers’ Championship title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix as his P5 under the lights gave him an unassailable 63-point lead over Norris.

Max Verstappen couldn’t resist the light dig

Additional reporting by Elizabeth Blackstock

The championship was Verstappen’s most difficult since 2021, as Red Bull’s fluctuating form meant that for much of the season he was not the driver sitting in the fastest car on the grid, namely Norris .

But according to Brown, at least “six, seven” drivers could have won the world title if they had driven Verstappen’s car.

The McLaren CEO told the Beyond the grid podcast in May after Verstappen won four of the first six races of the season: “I don’t think without a star driver you’re going to win, so you need both.

“First of all, it starts with the car. People ask me all the time, “Is that a car or a driver?” And it’s like, ‘well, it’s both.’

“I think the way I characterize it is: I think there are six, seven drivers on the grid who will be world champions at Red Bull.

“As great as Max is, and he is one of the best of all time, I don’t think Max wins the World Championship today in any car other than Red Bull.”

Verstappen was quick to recall his words to the American as Brown interrupted an interview to congratulate the four-time world champion, adding: “You deserved it. »

“And like you said,” Verstappen replied with a smile and a hug, “before I could only win it in the fastest car. This year has been a little different.

Brown took the ribbing well and congratulated Verstappen again before walking off: “Well done, well done.”

Read more about Max Verstappen’s championship success

Max Verstappen cuts through the noise to show the nice guys finish last

The updated ranking of Drivers and Manufacturers after the Las Vegas GP

Could Max Verstappen have won in a McLaren or a Ferrari?

Speaking to Dutch media after the race, Verstappen admitted that the barrage of criticism he and Red Bull have faced this season from Brown has only served to inspire him.

“Things like that only motivate me,” he said. “If people are critical and think I can only win with the best car, I’ll prove them wrong.”

As for whether he will now receive more credit for his success after being told it was just the car, he laughed: “If I don’t get it now, I don’t know what would ‘other (I have to do).”

In fact, if you ask the 27-year-old, he could have won this season if he had driven Norris’ McLaren. “Yes, even earlier.”

The Ferrari? “It’s pretty much the same thing, I think.”

The Mercedes? “No, that would have been a little more difficult.”

Winning the championship during a season in which Verstappen and Red Bull faced several controversial issues ranging from the investigation into Christian Horner to constant questions over Verstappen’s move to Mercedes, Horner applauded the ability of his driver Verstappen to rise above.

“I think in any adversity, adversity always galvanizes a team, and that’s certainly what happened with this team,” the team boss told media outlets including PlanèteF1.com.

And I think that there is immense pride in this championship, that there is often noise or speculation, and all of that has been ignored, especially by Max.

“He wasn’t distracted; he’s just come in and continued his work, and I think there’s obviously some areas that we need to improve on for next year and the team is very focused on that and how we can build on this for consecutive championships.

Read next: Las Vegas GP conclusions: Verstappen unbeatable, Hamilton vs Leclerc clues, Red Bull warning