Christian Horner insists nothing ‘comfortable or assured’ over Max Verstappen’ 57-point title lead against Lando Norris
Max Verstappen and Lando Norris have been engaged in a fierce title fight pretty much since the end of the 2024 summer break.
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Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, and Christian Horner (VIa: Imago)
The F1 world has turned extremely chaotic in the last few rounds. McLaren has superseded Red Bull in terms of performance, aiding Lando Norris to have a serious go at his first championship. However, Max Verstappen had a stellar weekend in Austin and has thus, extended his lead to 57 points. Despite this, Red Bull supremo Christian Horner insisted that the Dutchman’s hefty lead could disappear in a matter of races and asserted nothing is assured in the F1 circus.
Max Verstappen has won seven races so far this season, the highest among the drivers on the grid. However, his last Grand Prix triumph came back in Spain, before the summer break. This helped Lando Norris to take advantage of the fading RB20’s pace and made inroads into Verstappen’s lead. On the other hand, after an impressive race at the weekend in Austin, the reigning champion extended his lead in the championship for the first time since Belgium.
With fans anticipating Red Bull to get back on track and help the 27-year-old claim his fourth title, a sense of tranquility set upon the Dutchman’s fans. However, Christian Horner was not convinced that the current 57-point lead would be enough to guarantee the championship victory.
Five races to go now and a 57-point lead. Nothing’s ever comfortable or assured but it was important for us.
Christian Horner said in an interview as quoted by GPBlog
Moreover, Horner’s skepticism is much-needed as two torrid weekends for Verstappen could overturn the championship. Thus, the Milton Kernes-based squad would be keen on getting a few more points between the Dutchman and Norris before taking a sigh of relief.
Red Bull in a much stronger state for the upcoming races
With the Austrian giant’s upgrades finally working in Austin, Red Bull would be content with the result at the US GP. Moreover, the team would be hoping to get close to the front of the field at the next race in Mexico, a track where Verstappen has historically gone well at.
Subsequently, Horner joined in on the optimism and reckoned that RB20’s issues might be finally under control.
This disconnection between the front and rear of the car is now more balanced. From the first lap, that made Max a lot more competitive. He was happy with the car from the moment we arrived here. So that’s encouraging for the races ahead. This is exactly what we hoped for after Singapore.
Christian Horner said in an interview with RacingNews365
On the other hand, Ferrari took a major chunk out of Red Bull’s lead in Austin. The prancing horses scored a 1-2 and had an impressive sprint race. Thus, the Austrian giant might be able to defend the driver’s title but could lose the constructors’ to either Ferrari or McLaren.
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Geetansh Pasricha
(772 Articles Published)