Max Verstappen jokes that he is 'practising with Mario Kart' in dig at new F1 cars

[p]The Red Bull driver crashed in qualifying in the season-opener in Australia last weekend before having to carve his way from 20th on the grid to finish a creditable sixth.[/p][p]The new cars require battery management and energy harvesting with a 50-50 split between conventional and electrical power.[/p][p]They also have features such as straight-line mode, active aero, overtake and boost buttons, which [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/verstappen-max/UV3mgeXB/"]Verstappen[/a] reckons are nearer to a video game.[/p][p][b]"I swapped the simulator for my Nintendo Switch. I'm practising with Mario Kart, actually. Finding the mushrooms is going quite well, the blue shells are a bit more difficult."[/b][/p][p]Verstappen announced this week that he would be driving in the Nurburgring 24-hour race this year.[/p][embed guid="27935eee-a5b4-4df1-a8c3-3e2872109676" url="https://x.com/Max33Verstappen/status/2030575419028594769" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]"I wish I had a bit more fun for sure,"[/b] he said of Formula 1 at the moment.[/p][p][b]"I mean, I get to race the Nordschleife (Nurburgring) and I hope in the coming years I can do Spa and hopefully Le Mans.[/b][/p][p][b]"So I'm combining stuff and I'm also doing other stuff that is a lot of fun.[/b][/p][p][b]"It's a bit conflicted because I don't really enjoy to drive the car, but I do enjoy working with all the people in the team and from the engine department as well."[/b][/p][p]He did express optimism that things would improve as the new rules and regulations were adjusted and said drivers were already in discussions over changes.[/p][p][b]"I hope, of course, that it gets better,"[/b] said the Dutchman.[/p][p]"I've had discussions with F1 and the FIA and I think we are working towards something that will improve everything."[/p]