But every meteorologist will tell you: when the storm is brewing, appearances can be deceiving. Even more so when Max Verstappen took it into his head to offer himself an impossible comeback, of which he alone has the secret.
gullI didn’t expect to move up 17 places
“Honestly, I didn’t expect to move up 17 places today,” confided the Dutch pilot who did not forget to provoke luck. “But I experienced a real roller coaster of emotions. Above all, we had to avoid problems. We stayed calm and made the right decisions.”
Just a stroke of luck? Not sure ! A Grand Prix in the rain is potentially more likely to cause incidents. So the choice of Red Bull and Alpine not to rush their pit stop for tire changes was thoughtful. The exit from the track of Franco Colapinto (Williams) seeking to join the line formed by the safety car under a veritable deluge was this long-awaited boost! In one fell swoop, both Verstappen, Ocon and Gasly gained six places and the red flag gave them a free stop with the possibility of a ‘restart’ in the ideal position.
“All these things together of course made this result possible, admitted the Dutch pilot, returning from the devil Vauvert. It’s incredible to win here from so far away.”
A victory certainly memorable but all the more important as in this battle, Lando Norris (McLaren) undoubtedly lost much more than points. Victim of a missed start, stuck behind Russel’s Mercedes, the Briton made the bad choice of following the silver arrow into the pits on the 29th lap. Three safety cars, a red flag and fifteen laps later, the Grand Prix had completely changed. Trapped twice during restarts, Norris plunged to 7th place before seeing his teammate Piastri sacrifice himself again to allow him to score one more point.
“However, I remain certain that it was the right time to return to the pits, underlined the McLaren driver. But Max took advantage of the red flag. It’s bad luck for us! At the restart, I locked the rear wheels, that’s all.”
If he is now 62 points behind Verstappen signing, in passing his… 62nd Grand Prix victory, the figures are not wrong. Literally put on the ropes by his opponent, Norris will not be able to afford another defeat. Because if the Red Bull driver beats him at the next Las Vegas Grand Prix, he will already be assured of winning a 4th consecutive world crown!
