The Turkish Grand Prix offered yet another reversal at the top of the world championship standings. The second place in the race of Max Verstappen, combined with the fifth place harpooned by Lewis Hamilton, in fact, returned to the Dutchman the scepter of leader in the ranking, with a margin of six points compared to the reigning champion. Although Red Bull was not the best car on the Istanbul track, the orange driver managed to make the most of the whole weekend, managing to take advantage of his direct rival’s 11th position on the grid. In a GP full of twists, Verstappen’s race was quite linear.
“Overall we had a decent race – commented the Red Bull standard bearer himself at the end of the day, speaking to the official F1 website – we have maximized the result. Valtteri was faster. But in reality, all weekend we were a little behind in terms of pace compared to the Mercedes. This race was based only on managing the tires until a certain lap, stop to assemble another set and bring that to the end. It wasn’t the most fun race to ride, as you normally wish you could push a little harder. For the team, however, finishing second and third was a good result“.
Verstappen, however, has let a thread of worry regarding the performance of the RB16B, which in Turkey – as well as in Sochi – appeared forced to play in defense. In the three ‘American’ races, at this point, a turnaround will be necessary. “First in the league again? I would have liked to have had a little more pace in the car, it would have been easier, but we are fighting and we will continue to fight. We will see in the next races how competitive we are”Concluded Jos’s son.