Where has Red Bull gone, the star machine that dominated the last world championships? How is it possible that last year, in Monza, Verstappen showed up with a record 10 victories (interrupted only by two by Perez with the same car) in a season in which the final result was never in doubt? And how is it possible that now the three-time defending champion has never seen the checkered flag first in six consecutive races? And, again, how is it possible that Max is seeing his lead in the drivers’ standings being undermined by Lando Norris race after race?
Mystery. Verstappen himself asks this question, without a shred of gratitude towards the flying carpet that made him fly three times to the top of the world, now calling it “a monster”. But not in the sense that we are all used to attributing to Red Bull, but in the most derogatory one.
OK, so Max had a weekend to forget at the Italian Grand Prix as he barely managed to qualify in seventh place and then struggled to finish sixth on Sunday, but a little recognition for his faithful companion wouldn’t go amiss.
And yet, nothing. Verstappen goes hard. “Last year,” he explains, “we had a great car, it always dominated. And we basically transformed it into a monster.”
And it’s not just the withdrawal from the drug of victories that is taking a toll on Max’s patience: the champion sees the gap to Norris reduced to 62 points, while McLaren has moved to just eight points behind Red Bull in the constructors’ championship. So? “At the moment both championships are unrealistic,” said Verstappen. And in fact, even though there are eight races left to go in the championship, including Austin, Texas, Mexico City and Abu Dhabi, three tracks on which Verstappen has triumphed in each of the last three years, pessimism reigns supreme: “These are useless discussions,” explained Max, “the way we are at the moment, we are poor everywhere.”
From what we know Verstappen has lashed out, insulted, prodded the team, but always with a constructive attitude since (he says) he has provided the team with every possible and imaginable feedback. Who knows if it will be enough because the tightrope walker of driving is right about one thing: the car – which has become undriveable in a matter of months – must be turned over. How? Mystery.
Some time ago, when Mercedes dominated F1, Horner once told me seraphically “there is no problem, we have the strongest technicians in the world, we will get out of this and return unbeatable”. It seemed like a boast to me, a provocative way to mask a hard and long period of crisis.
Now we are in the same situation. With the aggravating circumstance that one of the strongest technicians that Cristian Horner spoke about will probably abandon Red Bull. We will see if this time too “the best in the world” will be able to bring the car back to the top.
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