The statement was an attempt to joke at the media's propensity to have favourites and "stage villains" (he's regarded as both, by different sections of the press).
Max is trying to develop a dry sense of humour. I recognise the early, awkward signs. The main problem is that he has yet to learn that humour isn't generally taken as humour if it can be plausibly taken as something straightforward. Especially when there are headlines in taking it literally.
Kimi took about 5 seasons to learn this; while some media outlets figured out what a strong sense of humour he has immediately, the British media in particular thought he had no sense of humour. (The British media dominated things then and nowadays, it's the American and British media, which doesn't help a nascent sense of humour's development due to the differences in audience receptivity that reveals). It was only during the first world championship campaign, in 2005, that Kimi got enough practise in front of a British media that they were able to adapt to each other's expectations and British media got to hear the real Kimi.
The other problem is that jokes that rely on the audience criticising itself are rarely seen as funny, or even as attempts at jokes. This is not the first time Max has made this error.
There's a reason it is traditional for British comics to spend lots of time on the regional circuit before becoming well-known across the nation. This is not a luxury single-seater drivers have, and the way humour development works, it's still legitimate to call Max young.