Max from Baku: 'Little details can make the difference in the battle with Ferrari'

Published on 12 June 2022 by Kees-Jan Koster

In Baku Max Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez interviewed each other in the podcast Talking Bull, the official podcast of Oracle Red Bull Racing. Max looks back on the first seven races of the season and looks ahead to the exciting battle for the championship.

What has been your highlight of the season so far?

“The Miami race was quite cool. We had to fight for it and pass cars for the win. Jeddah was nice, but in Miami it was really hot and very difficult. A new track, being in America, that was a cool experience. For the after party, I put the hard tyre on, and went for the long run, haha.”

How did you find the schedule so far?

“The last few races have been really busy, a lot of commitments, a lot of people around. From Miami onwards it has been non-stop, and it will continue like that. After Baku I have to go to Austria, then I fly straight on to Montreal, then after Montreal to New York. It is busy, very hectic. I think we should find a better way of connecting races. We go to Baku, then we go to Montreal, completely the other way, then we go back to Europe. For sure there must be a better way of fitting all these races in. That would help a lot because we lose so much time traveling.”

You are leading the championship. Did you expect to be here after seven Grands Prix?

“Starting the first race, I had no idea. It seemed like we had a competitive car, to be in the fight for the championship. But after retiring two times and being 46 points down in the championship. I thought it was gone, or it would take a very long time to catch up. But basically, in three races, as a team we turned it around and both of us are up there. That is satisfying, but we also know it can change really quickly. We have to be on our toes, and focus on not retiring anymore, already the two we had is too much. It has been hectic and a bit crazy the few races we had so far.”

What is your ultimate goal for this season?

“As a team we want to try and win the constructors championship. We were close last year, but we had quite a bit of bad luck with retirements and unlucky races. Both of us were taken out in Hungary in turn one. If both of us had a good result there, the constructors would have looked quite different. I hope this year we can do it, because I think the whole team, all the team members, deserve it for all their hard work. For me personally I will try to win the championship again. We have a good car, but it is a close fight with Ferrari at the moment. It is all about little details which can make the difference.”