“You have to wonder if he was smart enough to go inside,” Jan Lammers doubts Max Verstappen’s decisions following the safety car incident at the Bahrain GP
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Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen who had started the Bahrain GP from P2 on Sunday followed race winner Charles Leclerc throughout the entirety of the race until he had to retire his RB18 during the closing laps of the race due to evident steering and fuel pump issues along with Mexican teammate Sergio Perez. However, he did get the chance to overtake Leclerc in laps 17, 18 and 19 only for the Monégasque racing driver to reclaim his spot.
There was a safety car employed on the tracks after AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly’s AT03 caught fire due to an overheating issue. It was visible how the recently crowned world champion did seem to have a chance to snatch the lead away from Ferrari’s Leclerc due to the safety car being employed.
Verstappen raced beside Leclerc in an attempt to compel him to take off and start racing, but it flopped when the Red Bull driver ran too close on the final corner, like he did against 7-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi. Not only did this permit Leclerc to close the deficit, but it also allowed Carlos Sainz, Leclerc’s teammate, to chase Verstappen. The Spaniard approached Verstappen and was on the verge of passing him before the Red Bull driver preserved his spot.
Jan Lammers believes that Verstappen wasn’t smart enough with his move
Although Verstappen’s vehicle would end up retiring, meaning his Safety Car maneuvers would have been futile had he passed Leclerc, former Dutch Formula One driver Jan Lammers has disputed his decision to attack the corner so narrowly.
Lammers who made his debut in Formula One driving for Shadow and moved to ATS for 1980 had his own doubts regarding Verstappen being “smart enough” during the race when he had the chance to overtake Leclerc.
“I’m not saying he’s doing anything wrong, but you have to wonder if he was smart enough to go inside. Leclerc was able to take the momentum into the last corner and Sainz was right down the neck of Verstappen, because he was able to take the corner normally,” explained the sporting director of DGP F1.
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Rishika Saha
(445 Articles Published)