Verstappen sees himself in Norris: 'Reminded me of my first win'
F1 News
- Ludo van Denderen
No sadness, but genuine joy for his friend Lando Norris. Max Verstappen is the type of driver who wants to win always and everywhere, preferably by a large margin. But in Miami, the Red Bull Racing Dutch driver was especially happy that Norris took the win. Until late into the American night, Verstappen celebrated with the McLaren driver his first win in Formula 1.
"Yeah, we had good fun," Verstappen reflected on the night in Miami. "It's nice to see Lando win that race because I think it was a long time coming. And then, in a way, it also reminded me a bit more of my first win again, the excitement and stuff, so it was a good night"
That Norris won was partly due to a lucky safety car moment (for him) and probably the damage Verstappen had to his RB20. The gaps between the teams seem to have narrowed anyway, and so any setback by Verstappen is now being punished. "Was it because we were doing everything right or people were doing things wrong?" Verstappen looks back on his many wins in recent seasons.
Verstappen always strives for perfection
"It's always very difficult to tell. But, of course, you always have to try and be on top of your game, but naturally, that is not always the case. I mean, you can't have every single weekend where everything goes perfectly. That's simply impossible, but you always try to be as close as you can be to that perfection. But, you know, sometimes it works out a bit better. In Miami, it didn't really work out that well, and actually when other people are improving and making their cars look a bit more like ours, then, yeah, they get a bit closer," Verstappen said.
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy