Verstappen issues warning to the competition: "We can fight again"
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Max Verstappen issued a warning to the rest of Formula 1, saying that Red Bull "can fight again" after his brilliant win at the Brazilian Grand Prix. A warning was already sent out after his stunning performance in the Grand Prix, but after many months of struggle for the Austrian team and the Dutchman behind the heel of the RB20, the 27-year-old knows that his team are back where they belong.
It had been ten races without a victory for Verstappen, his longest drought of race wins since the 2020 season. However, in Sao Paulo, he was able to stand on the top step of the podium for the first time since the Spanish Grand Prix, and he did so with one of the greatest wins of his career. After starting from P17 in the grid, the Dutcman mastered the treacherous conditions far better than anyone else, weaving his way through the grid to eventually win by over 13 seconds.
That win all but cemented his fourth world championship, with title rival Lando Norris only finishing in P6. The Brit started on pole, and it looked like all Verstappen could do was limit the damage Norris was going to do to his championship lead. However, on a day when Norris could have shifted the momentum completely, it went in the opposite direction. A poor start, followed by mistakes and poor communication from his team meant Norris was easily beaten, meaning the gap increased to 62 points with three races remaining.
Red Bull back to their best says Verstappen
But for Verstappen, he knows how much the win means to him after a prolonged period: "Of course, it was important. I wanted to, of course, win a bit sooner. It's been tough for us. We always kept pushing. We didn't really understand why the others were so fast in the race, especially. We've been trying a lot of things to improve the car. And starting P17 this morning, it didn't look like we were going to win the race again."
With that victory and improved performance from Red Bull back under their belts, the Dutchman now knows that more performances like that are possible once again: "It's an incredible result for us. A massive boost for the team because, honestly, it's been tough. But it is also a big strength of the team to stay calm and just try to work on performance and try to improve our situation. And I'm confident. I'm confident for the last three races that we can fight again. And especially in the race, we will be more competitive.
"I was just very motivated to get a good race and just let the race pan out and see what happens. Because in the wet race, always some crazy things can happen. I was passing a few cars and I had always one lap or two laps of free air, and I was always the fastest on the track. I knew that, okay we are quick. I just need to try and pass the guys to try and have a run to the front. I felt comfortable in the car. I feel comfortable in the wet anyway, but then when the car is also performing, it just doubles up and you can really pick up the pace," Verstappen concluded
This article was created in collaboration with Nicole Mulder
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