“We have to put pressure on”
Max Verstappen is very worried
28.06.2024, 10:15 a.m.
At first glance, you might not really believe that Max Verstappen is worried about his sporting future: The serial world champion seems almost unbeatable in the current Formula 1 season. But the competition is catching up, and the dominator is noticing this. And he is putting pressure on.
Max Verstappen was not put off by a small false start in the emotional home game of his Red Bull team. “We are working as hard as we can to improve,” said the Formula 1 world champion in Spielberg, still slightly out of breath. He arrived in his private plane a good 15 minutes late for the press conference at the race track in Austria, where the next victories are to be achieved this weekend.
But Verstappen also arrived at the Red Bull Ring with concerns, because after his hard-fought victory on Sunday in Barcelona, the 26-year-old Dutchman said: “I think we are no longer number one.” Teammate Sergio Perez recently missed the podium five times in a row, only finishing eighth in Imola and Barcelona, and not even reaching the finish line in Monaco and Montreal.
Verstappen is no longer winning because he has the clearly dominant car, but because he is by far the best driver. He makes the right decisions at the right moment, almost without making any mistakes. “He is so determined in big moments,” praised team boss Christian Horner.
Verstappen himself would certainly not mind if things got easier again as soon as possible. “We are not the fastest on the track. McLaren was also stronger in terms of tire wear, so we have to do something,” said Verstappen before the home race, for which the Red Bull management team including CEO Oliver Mintzlaff is also expected at the Ring.
Sprint weekend as a challenge
A double home game awaits the three-time champion in Styria. Traditionally, thousands of fans travel from the Netherlands and ensure a particularly atmospheric atmosphere in the stands. Verstappen has thanked them with four victories in the past six years – and is aiming for the same on Sunday. (3 p.m./Sky and in the live ticker on ntv.de) to extend his World Cup lead.
After seven victories this season, he leads by a comfortable 69 points ahead of his closest rival Lando Norris in the McLaren before the eleventh of 24 races, with Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari just two points behind. Verstappen has led the overall standings without interruption for more than two years.
He repeatedly stresses that he wants to be in the best car permanently. But even if Red Bull loses its dominance, that would not mean that he would switch quickly. “It doesn’t work like that. I am tied to the team for the long term and we are already working on the car for next year,” said Verstappen. There has been speculation for months that he could possibly become Lewis Hamilton’s successor at Mercedes in 2025. At least publicly, Verstappen does not give the impression that he is currently thinking about it.
The fact that his British friend Norris was in the fastest car recently is not to the liking of the Monegasque-born driver. “I’ve been worried about that for a while. We have to get it under control again,” he said. Things will be particularly tricky in Spielberg because one of the six sprint weekends of the year is coming up. There is only one training session left to get the car set up as optimally as possible. Then on Friday there will be qualifying for the sprint, on Saturday there will be a 100-kilometer sprint for eight world championship points for the winner, and a few hours later there will be qualifying for the Grand Prix.
Route to Farce rebuilt last year
“We need to find a bit more power to win comfortably,” said Verstappen. “If you look at our last victories, we were ahead because we were there at the right moment and were simply strong as a team.” British team boss Horner agreed: “It’s important now that we put the pressure on because there are still a lot of races to come.” That’s why technical improvements are to follow. Overall, the main new thing is the breadth of the competition. “McLaren is doing a great job, Ferrari is not far behind and Mercedes has also made progress,” said Horner.
Meanwhile, a major annoyance on the track has been eliminated. Because the drivers kept leaving the track and driving outside the lane markings last year, a record number of 20 penalties were issued. Exactly 130 lap times were canceled and 84 track limit violations were punished. Temporary gravel strips and gravel beds have now been installed in corners nine and ten to slow the drivers down. Anyone who drives into them anyway risks a breakdown or damage to the vehicle.