Lambasted for his tactics in Austin and Mexico, Christian Horner says Max Verstappen gave the best reply possible as he blitzed the competition in Brazil.
Verstappen’s driving standards have been in the spotlight in recent weeks after questionable defending against McLaren’s Lando Norris.
Max Verstappen gave the ‘best’ answer possible,
Racing wheel-to-wheel at the United States Grand Prix, Norris was given a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage as he tried to pass Verstappen around the outside of Turn 12 on lap 52.
Usually a 10-second penalty, the stewards reduced it to five as they cited Verstappen’s part in Norris being off the track as he had forced the Briton wide, not making the corner himself.
A week later they were at it again but this time it was Verstappen who was penalised, 10 seconds for forcing Norris off the track at Turn 4 and another 10 for leaving the track and gaining an advantage at Turn 8. That latter incident was a repeat of Verstappen’s Austin antics as once again he couldn’t make the corner and pushed Norris off at the same time.
He was blasted for that, Martin Brundle calling it “plain dangerous” while FIA steward Johnny Herbert called out what he perceived to be the Dutchman’s “horrible mindset”. Another former F1 driver, Damon Hill, said it was “Dick Dastardly stuff” with Verstappen using “fear and intimidation” on the track.
Verstappen sniped back: “I’m a three-time World Champion. I think I know what I’m doing.”
And do it he did at the Brazilian Grand Prix, racing from 17th on the grid in wet conditions to win by almost 20 seconds. It was Verstappen’s first Grand Prix since Barcelona.
“There has been a lot of comments that have been made and opinions that have been voiced against Max and the way he drives, and I think the best way to answer those critics was to produce the drive that he did,” said the Red Bull team boss.
“We’ve watched a lead that has been diminishing since before the summer break, and having not won since June, it was great to hear the Rolling Stones playing again in the garage in memory of Dietrich Mateschitz. We play that every time we win a Grand Prix.”
Horner applauded Verstappen’s mental strength as he revealed he hadn’t spoken with the driver about the criticism but had instead left the Dutchman to his own devices.
“You know when to put an arm around him, but he’s not that kind of driver,” he said. “He works it out for himself, his mental resilience is huge, and that’s part of the strength that he has.
“But you can see how much it meant to him. I don’t think I’ve seen him that animated on a podium for, I can’t remember the last time, so it meant a huge amount to him. And I really believe that we’ve witnessed one of the great drives in F1.”
Verstappen’s eighth win of the season took him one big step closer to retaining the World title as he now leads Lando Norris by 62 points with 86 points still in play. He could wrap up the title at the next race in Las Vegas.
When asked about what he expects next, Verstappen said: “I just want clean races, that’s all. I am not thinking about clinching the championship in Vegas or whatever.”