Max Verstappen claims he was able to ‘do his own race’ en route to Sprint victory in Austria

Max Verstappen claimed that after breaking the DRS to the two McLarens, he was in a race of his own to take Sprint victory at the Red Bull Ring.

Max Verstappen claims he was able to ‘do his own race’ en route to Sprint victory in Austria

Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)

The Austrian GP weekend is well underway. Max Verstappen had dominated Sprint Qualifying on Friday, defeating the two McLarens for pole position. The reigning world champion carried this momentum on Saturday and took a rather comfortable victory in the Sprint race. The Dutch driver expressed his thoughts after the race.

Max Verstappen claimed that he had a good first lap. The Dutch driver had a decent start which enabled him to get an upper hand on Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. However, Verstappen mentioned that the DRS made it difficult to keep the two McLarens behind. As the reigning world champion struggled to get out of DRS range to Norris.

It was a good first lap, but once the DRS is enabled it is hard to get out of.
Max Verstappen said post-race
YouTube video

Lando Norris briefly took the lead of the race. However, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri managed to overtake the Briton. After this, Verstappen simply drove off into the distance. The Dutch driver stated that he was in a race of his own after getting out of DRS range. Moreover, the Red Bull driver noted that the two McLarens were pushing flat out throughout the Sprint.

FS Video
Once I broke DRS, I was able to do my own race. There were two cars pushing flat out behind me.
Max Verstappen explained

Max Verstappen claims Red Bull will look at data to improve for Sunday’s race

At the start of the Sprint, it seemed that Max Verstappen might not have the pace to out-race Lando Norris. The Dutch driver was under pressure for a handful of laps. However, Verstappen crossed the chequered flag with a lead of over 4 seconds to second-placed Piastri after a race of just 23 laps.

Christian Horner and Max Verstappen
Christian Horner and Max Verstappen (Via: Imago)

Max Verstappen revealed that he would need to look back at the entire Sprint. The reigning world champion admitted that he was completely focused on his own run throughout the session. The Dutch driver emphasized that Red Bull will carefully analyze the data to understand where it can improve for the main race on Sunday.

I need to have a look at the whole race. I was busy with myself, and we will look at the data to see where we can improve for tomorrow.
Max Verstappen stated

Certainly, Max Verstappen is glad to continue his streak of Sprint victories. The 26-year-old had a calm drive towards the end of the session without having to battle against Piastri. However, Verstappen and Red Bull will recognize that the two McLarens are not far behind in terms of pure pace. As such, it will be interesting to see how things pan out in Qualifying for the Grand Prix.

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