As a laid-back father, Verstappen was ready to take a penalty, “to make things more interesting”!
The remarks of the winner of the Mexican race reflect a certain ease. Benefiting from the circumstances at the start, Max Verstappen dominated his subject!
The Dutchman was alone in his world! On the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Max Verstappen exacted ample revenge for a pole lost at the last moment on Saturday. Freed from Vettel and Hamilton by the third corner, the Red Bull driver faced no formidable competitors in his path. The young driver, in his twenties, was no fool, having left Valtteri Bottas nearly twenty seconds behind at the checkered flag!
« It was one of the easiest victories of my career. I knew we missed something yesterday. But after seeing my times on the long runs, I was confident in the car’s level. We just needed to balance the settings well for everything to be correct. »
The main threat on the track was actually at the start, and from that moment three abreast towards T1. The former Toro Rosso driver thanks the favorable layout of a circuit, with 890 meters of straight line before the obstacle.
« The start itself was not good. I revved the engine too much. But I got the slipstream on Sebastian, which allowed me to pull alongside him on the outside in the first corner. »
« Then, I just needed to manage the tires. The car performed brilliantly in this race. »
A Well-Assumed Sense of Superiority
Yes, definitely, everything was easy for the youngest Grand Prix winner. Just like on the track, the winner was not lacking audacity when facing the journalists.
« I maintained a cruising pace. It was good to see Lewis and Seb’ battling. I managed to escape in the process! I was so far ahead that I told myself “come on, cut the corner and take a five-second penalty, just to make things a bit more interesting. »
After a first half of the season marked by seven retirements and repeated mechanical failures, the tide is turning for Max Verstappen. 80 points have fallen into his lap since the Malaysian Grand Prix, the start of the Asian tour. That’s four races of happiness! The best might even be yet to come for 2018…
« We are on the right track. We must ensure to continue this way. I think that with a good start to the season next year, we can accomplish great things. »
Also questioned by journalists, Christian Horner praised the exceptional driving of his young wolf.
« It was incredible. We couldn’t slow him down. It was even crazy to see how enthusiastic he was, like after the overtaking at the start! »
The shadow over the picture was nonetheless these three retirements from the Renault camp: Ricciardo and the Renault boys.
It was quite nerve-wracking to see that something could have also happened to Max. But he controlled everything. These last four races, I think we had the best car on Sunday. It’s a nice way to end the season, even if we would have preferred to see both cars finish.
Daniel Ricciardo will therefore wish to break the curse in Brazil. With four podiums in seven races since the return at Spa-Francorchamps, the Australian was having a second season with a bang. Overshadowed following Verstappen’s contract extension, the Australian will seek to level the playing field at Interlagos…
Lovin’ that crowd! 👊 🇲🇽 #MexicoGP pic.twitter.com/ui4UrzbpaY
— Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 29, 2017
