F1 will thrill in new engine era and Verstappen sure to stay, Domenicali says

Feb 20 : Formula One chief executive Stefano Domenicali has assured fans that the sport's new engine era will still provide plenty of thrills and Max Verstappen is in no danger of walking away.

Four times world champion Verstappen has been outspoken about the new cars not being fun to drive and producing a situation that is "like Formula E on steroids" and "anti-racing".

The Red Bull driver has said before that he will stop racing if he no longer enjoys it but Domenicali said there was no risk of that.

"I have a very good relationship with Max," the Italian told reporters on a video call when asked what made him so confident.

"I know him very well. I spend a lot of time with him. That's the reason. Full stop. He loves Formula One. There's no doubt about it."

MET VERSTAPPEN DURING TESTING 

Domenicali said he met Verstappen during testing in Bahrain on Wednesday and it had been a very constructive talk.

"I guarantee you that Max wants and cares about Formula One more than anyone else," he said. "He has a way of putting the point that he wants to say in a certain way.

"We'll have a very constructive meeting also with the federation (FIA) to highlight what are his points of view of what he believes needs to be done to keep the driving style at the centre without changing the approach."   

Much of the pre-season has been dominated by debate about the new cars, how they might perform and what the racing will be like with the balance between electric and combustion engine now 50-50.

That will mean drivers have to be tactical with energy deployment and regeneration, with the old drag reduction system replaced by a new overtake mode giving extra power for overtaking.

A NEW WAY OF DRIVING

Describing it as a "new way of driving, a new way of