Max Verstappen started the season on the back foot, but a string of great results have turned around the Dutchman’s chances in the F1 championship. Of course, DNF’s by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in Zandvoort and Baku respectively have helped immensely, but in Singapore he again gained on the McLaren duo.
“Having fun” Verstappen’s main focus
Ahead of that race, Verstappen was asked whether he sees a championship run as a possibility. Considering the fact that he didn’t see himself win another race ahead of the summer break, his recent form might have changed his opinion.
“From my side, honestly, I just see it as a race by race thing. 69 points [63 after Singapore] is still a lot, especially if you look at how the season has gone so far. I mean, McLaren has been incredibly dominant. That doesn’t suddenly change.
“So for me, yeah, I’m not too stressed about anything. I’m just enjoying what I’m doing and having fun outside of it, having fun.”
Having fun seems to be the key-phrase here, as the four-time champion seeks out additional activities such as racing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in GT3 cars. It underlines the laissez-faire attitude Verstappen has towards his championship chances.
“I’m just trying to do the best I can every single time that I jump in the car. Some tracks naturally will be a bit better for us, some probably a bit worse. Maybe [Singapore] a bit worse.
“If we win it, we win it, great. If we don’t, we don’t. Life goes on. It’s not, yeah, I don’t know. I’m just not too stressed about anything.”
Verstappen’s driving excellence obscured by the RB21’s drivability issues
Apart from some early season shenanigans with George Russell in Barcelona, Verstappen’s driving has been generally top notch. However, with the Red Bull RB21 being a true diva, his current slim championship chances don’t reflect that. And Verstappen tends to agree with that sentiment.
“Yeah, it might be,” he replies. “Of course, sometimes maybe it was a bit more difficult to show that in the middle of the season. But I think every time that you progress as a driver every single year, maybe you want to become better or at least be similar to what you have achieved in the past.
“And I think we are doing that. The car’s not always been nice or easy to drive. But lately, it does seem that it’s heading in the right direction.
“And then actually with a car that is a bit more competitive and also a bit more predictable, yeah, you can show better things. I think that’s quite normal. But in general, of course, yeah, very happy with the driving side of things throughout, I think, the whole season.”
