Formula 1 “What the hell, what the hell? But what are you telling me? I don’t understand, what’s the problem? An anger like in the good old days, which we had almost lost the habit of. Formula 1 driver Max Verstappen did not hesitate to climb the laps last Saturday during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix. The reason ? His team forced him into the pits as he was about to set the fastest lap, synonymous with pole position for the next day’s race. But because of too little fuel in his tanks – you need at least one liter of fuel on arrival – the Dutchman had no choice but to come and park his car in the paddocks. , without being able to cross the finish line. Enough to push a good mouthful against his team.
And for good reason, he could not do better than 7th, Sunday during the race, his position at the start after his misadventure in qualifying, when he had to win, and hope for a poor performance from his rivals Charles Leclerc and Checo Perez, to win his second World Championship title. It’s finally only a postponement for the Japanese Grand Prix, on the Suzuka circuit, which will start this Sunday (7am). The conditions for seeing him become a second time world champion are even more favorable to him.
“More serene, more peaceful, more zen”
This little stroke of blood, one of the few of the season with the exception of his two retirements during the first three races, paradoxically symbolizes his change of attitude this year. “It’s impressive to see how his first title has transformed him, he is much more serene, more peaceful, more zen than before, still being as strong on the track”, underlines Daniel Ortelli, author of the live Max Verstappen, the coronation of a champion, published by City Edition.
He had rather accustomed Formula 1 fans to quite the opposite, from his debut to a not so distant period when he chained retirements because of the unreliability of his single-seater. “When he arrived in Formula 1 at 17, many cried crazy saying that it was nonsense to drive a kid. He was aware of that, with enormous pressure on his shoulders. He was a little inhibited, he spoke like a robot and was not relaxed at all. And it was felt on the track, where he was very aggressive, ”recalls Daniel Ortelli who knew him during his very first tests in F1, in 2014, on the Suzuka circuit, in particular. To the point of being too often singled out by other drivers for his muscular driving, like last year during his fight with Hamilton.
“Max almost became a tire whisperer”
But being conditioned by his father Jos Verstappen, a former Formula 1 driver, to become world champion, it is difficult to behave differently. “He has always strived for this goal, and seeing him achieve it last year has completely changed the way he works,” says Daniel Ortelli. And even to drive. “Max has almost become a tire whisperer,” Helmut Marko, one of RedBull’s managers, remarked to Austria’s ORF this season, happy that he no longer “freaks out” when something “doesn’t work”. . Since the start of the season, Ferrari has been more efficient over one lap, as evidenced by their eleven pole positions obtained in qualifying. But once in the race, Max Verstappen and RedBull become almost untouchable, especially thanks to tire management.
The progress of his team, and the zenitude of Verstappen are also intimately linked. His former outbursts have made the Austrian team progress, and this progress now allows him to be more serene. “He succeeded in uniting the team towards high standards and since then they have left nothing to chance. This is what allowed them to jump at the chance to win the title in Abu Dhabi last year. There is a total requirement and a perfect strategy,” said the former F1 follower.
To the point of seeing Max Verstappen completely released on Thursday at a press conference, before a decisive weekend, going so far as to joke with Daniel Ricciardo, much more renowned for his good humor than the Dutchman. The 104 point lead over Charles Leclerc, the Ferrari driver, clearly has something to do with it. This is also the only risk of losing Verstappen according to Daniel Ortelli, that of wanting to leave for Ferrari after having won everything with RedBull, “exactly like Alonso or Vettel in their time, and they all missed each other in the big widths,” he warns. A challenge commensurate with Dutch genius?