Max Verstappen on long-term damage: “My spine doesn’t look good”

Max Verstappen isn’t known for mincing his words. Not even when it comes to the notorious bumps at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA).

The 29-year-old Dutchman has said: “Well, these bumps are part of the track, and people keep saying it’s down to the marshland subsoil – that the ground is constantly shifting. But sorry, that can’t be an excuse; I find it unacceptable.”

The 73-time Grand Prix winner has explained in detail the hardships drivers face on COTA’s ‘washboard’ track.

Verstappen dispels the myth that the 2026 cars will be more comfortable to drive than the winged cars from 2022 to the end of 2025: “That’s not true. It’s actually got even worse, because we have very low ride heights in corners, whilst on the straights we have what’s known as ‘straight mode’, where the car raises itself. In most places, especially when braking, you actually hit the bumps harder than before, because most of the bumps are when braking or in the corners, not on the straights.”

“I love this circuit here. I love this place. It’s one of the best track layouts there is, and it’s one of the best cities we can visit with Formula 1. But if certain sections of the track here are ground down, that’s just a sticking plaster on a gaping wound. A different approach is needed.”

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“That means, of course, that they’d have to completely reopen the track. And that costs a lot of money and time, but to be honest, it’s the only way to get rid of the bumps, because these bumps aren’t natural and they’ve got out of control.”

“Last year, for example, you’d be experiencing about 5G or 6G in a corner, but I had a few vertical loads of over 9G on my spine, which really isn’t any fun.”

“And the older you get, the more you think about things like that. With today’s cars, especially when braking, you hit the ground much harder because the wings close and the ground clearance drops, so braking is a very stressful moment.”

“It really isn’t pleasant, and sometimes people don’t understand that. But I can say that the scans I have done regularly on my spine don’t look too good at the lower end.”

“I know that’s part and parcel of racing. I know that physical strain can be part of the sport, but of course there’s also further damage caused by the cars we’ve had in recent years.

“If we keep putting up with this – driving on surfaces like this – then future drivers will suffer even more.”