Max looking forward to Dutch GP: 'Would be amazing to win'
Published on 31 August 2021 by Niels Hendrix
It was a crazy weekend in Belgium, where the continual rain made it impossible to have a proper race. Max Verstappen is asked how he is feeling after winning the shortest race in Formula 1 history? Max: “It’s not how you expect to win a race and not the way we wanted the weekend to go but a win is a win and the points are still important for both championships and we have to maximize every opportunity. Of course, as drivers we all wanted to race and put on a show for the fans but it was clearly not an easy decision and the lack of visibility meant it just wasn’t safe in the end so we have to respect that.”
The Dutch GP will be your second home race in a row, how does it feel to be heading to the Netherlands to race in Formula 1 for the first time in your F1 career? “I'm really looking forward to the race at Zandvoort”, says Max. “It will be special to have a race in The Netherlands in front of my home crowd but also as a driver it’s a good challenge to go to a new circuit and find the limit in an F1 car. It was amazing to see so many fans supporting us in Austria and Belgium and I hope we can put on a good show for everyone in the grandstands this weekend. As for the track, it might be a little hard to overtake on but for single lap performance, I think it’s going to be rewarding. The qualifying laps will be very quick there so any mistakes will be really costly. After the race was cancelled last year this year will be even more special and of course it would be amazing to win on another home circuit in front of the Orange Army.”
You won the 2014 Formula 3 Masters race at Zandvoort. How has the track changed since then? Max: “I’ve only done one race at Zandvoort and it was in a Formula 3 car. At that time I was known as ‘the son of’ but it’s going to be the other way around now [laughs]. The track has of course changed since then, with a few corners adjusted. Already in the F3 car, the corners were really enjoyable and they were pretty fast so I’m excited to race again in the F1 car with even more grip. I’ve also been there a few times with Red Bull for show runs in an old f1 car, so I have driven a few laps on the updated track in an F1 car which could be useful on the first few laps.”
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