“I Invite Him To Ride in My Car”: Max Verstappen Snaps as COTA Boss Bobby Epstein Downplays Poor Conditions

Max Verstappen has replied to Bobby Epstein, the chairman of the Circuit of the Americas, who claimed that the US Grand Prix track is in “good shape.” Verstappen invited Epstein to ride in his car, saying the circuit owner would not be able to walk after five laps of doing so.

“It should not happen that a car has to endure such an impact at such a high speed. I am taking painkillers here; normally I don’t need to. And it shouldn’t be necessary,” said Verstappen [via De Telegraaf].

“I invite him to ride in my car. Then I think that after five laps he will get out and won’t be able to walk anymore,” he added.

Verstappen called the bumpy US Grand Prix track ‘unacceptable’ earlier in the weekend, explaining that the track surface will serve as a major hindrance during this weekend’s Grand Prix.

What COTA Track Boss Actually Said About the US Grand Prix Circuit

The COTA circuit boss, Epstein, reacted to Verstappen’s criticism of the track this weekend, saying he does not ‘feel good’ about the track bumps either. He claimed that the circuit supervisors have found the bumps that the Dutchman was talking about and fixed them ahead of the Grand Prix.

“We don’t feel good that there’s a bump at the bottom of Turn 1. We didn’t know about it until this week. We would have fixed it,” Epstein told ESPN.

“But the other things Max spoke about, all the bumps around the track, we’ve fixed them. The track is in really good shape,” he added.

Bobby Epstein Defends COTA Track After Max Verstappen Criticism

Epstein has also defended the COTA track following Verstappen’s criticism, as he pointed to the World Endurance Championship drivers’ opinions, who apparently told him that the track is fine. He also added that the irregularity at Turn 1 is a ‘dip’ rather than a bump, and the circuit owners cannot do anything about it.

“I talked to some WEC drivers who said there’s no problem. There’s one bump at the beginning of [Turn] 1 that is not acceptable in my mind. It’s a dip, not a bump,” said Epstein.

“If it were a bump, we’d sharpen it out, we’d take care of it tomorrow night, or overnight tonight, and that kind of stuff’s happened before [at other circuits]. But when it’s a dip it’s a lot different, there’s no easy fix,” he added.

Verstappen has said this week that he has had to take medication to deal with the stress the bumpy US Grand Prix has put on his spine. Meanwhile, reigning world champion Lando Norris also said that he has been taking medication to deal with the headaches induced by the COTA track bumps.

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