Max: 'In Austria we worked hard and won, will try to do the same in Hockenheim'
Published on 19 July 2018 by Mike Motilall
Our German neighbours are also experiencing tropical conditions with temperatures above the thirty degree mark. The fans in the Red Bull Energy Station, where Max met with the international press corps, were doing overtime. At the Hockenheimring, a great many Dutch fans is expected once again. Max really enjoys that, as he shares with us: “It is nice to see so many Dutch fans everywhere, especially in Europe.”
The German Grand Prix is nowadays only driven once every two years at Hockenheim, after having previously traded places with Nürburgring every other year. “I think it is a good thing that there is a German Grand Prix, whether it is held at Hockenheim or at Nürburgring”, says Max. “It’s a shame that it’s held every other year though. But with all those German drivers, team and the large motor-industry, it’s quite obvious that a Grand Prix is organized though.
What do you think of the extra, third DRS-zone that has been added? “Good, that is better. It doesn’t create overtaking possibilities, but you can get closer to the driver ahead of you when you exit Turn three. The Formula 1-viewers would prefer to do without DRS, because overtaking without DRS looks more natural and is better as well.”
You know the track from the Formula Renault 2.0 tests, Formula 3-races and two years ago during your first and only Formula 1-race. How do you look back at the fact that you had to let your team mate Daniel Ricciardo pass? Max: “I was new at Red Bull Racing and Daniel was doing better in the standings. Apart from that, we were busy doing different strategies, that’s why it was pretty straight forward. This year we are in a completely different situation, also because this season it’s very easy to plan a strategy regarding the tyres. So you don’t need to start with two different strategies as a team.”
Hockenheim is not a track that suits the RB14 well. How do you look at that? “I always do a job to the best of my capabilities, every weekend. We struggle on some tracks, and getting a good result is all the more satisfying. If you know in advance that you are almost sure to win, it even becomes boring. I always enjoy driving. In Austria we didn’t have high expectations as well, but by keep working hard and extracting the best we eventually won the race. I will try the same here as well.”
With the mediums, softs and ultra-softs, one tyre compound is skipped. That worked out well in China. Max regarding that: “After the free practices, we’ll see how the tyre degradation is over here. The temperature is of course also different here than in China, so we’ll have to wait and see.”
There is a chance of showers on Saturday. Are you hoping for a qualifying in the wet? “That would be nice, but we need to wait and see what the weather does here. Friday in particular will be very warm here and I am not sure that will be to our advantage. Tomorrow I’ll be able to tell you more.”
