"I'm not here because of other people's opinions": Max Verstappen on getting recognition for winning in a slower car

Max Verstappen feels recognition of winning races in a sub-optimal car does not make a difference to him. Speaking to onsite media ahead of the Spanish GP weekend, the Red Bull champion preferred straightforward weekends but did not fear competition.

In the last four races, Red Bull has struggled to dominate like they have in 2022 and 2023, or even earlier in 2024. The lead that Max Verstappen has led a race with has also been reduced significantly by the Canadian GP. Facing stiff competition from Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes, the reigning champion has held his own by outperforming his tools at tracks like Imola and Canada.

On whether it was more satisfying to win in a slower car, Max Verstappen felt that the recognition and opinions did not matter. He felt that Red Bull knew his potential and ability to deliver, devoid of the car and circumstances. Therefore, he stated that reducing his own mistakes has helped him make it count on weekends when he has faced stiff competition. Although he preferred straightforward weekends where he could lead the pack by a significant margin, the Dutchman was open to the competition.

Asked if it was more satisfying to win with a struggling car, in terms of public recognition, Max Verstappen said:

“Well, I'm not here because of other people's opinions. I know what I can do, and the team knows what I can do. So, I just focus on my performance. I know that when we are under pressure, we can do a good job, but of course, we are not robots. People make mistakes, I make mistakes as well, but you try to minimize those kinds of mistakes throughout the year, especially when you are in a tight battle with a lot of teams, where you constantly need to score points.”

Asked if he preferred straightforward race weekends where he could lead by 20 seconds or races like Montreal, Max Verstappen replied:

"Well, I enjoy Montreal as well, every single time. But at the same time, I also really enjoy really getting everything out of the car myself and winning by 20 seconds, but I'm not afraid of competition as well. So for me, it doesn't matter here and there, you know, having one of these races is okay.”

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Max Verstappen believes that Imola and Montreal performances needed 100 percent from car and driver

In Imola and Canada, Max Verstappen outperformed his car on a track where McLaren was strong. He felt that those were the race weekends where he needed to extract 100 percent from the car and himself under pressure. Unbothered by the pressure of his rivals, the reigning champion felt that the weekends when he had to earn his victory were normal.

Explaining Red Bull’s issues over the last few race weekends, Max Verstappen claimed that it was not just setup issues but circuit-specific. The RB20 has not suited circuits where there are too many bumps or kerbs, which the Dutchman felt was one of the reasons for their struggles. He believes that with the competition getting tight, small issues have hampered their performance.

Asked about performing under pressure at the Imola and Montreal weekends where it was less of the car and more of him at play, Max Verstappen said:

“I think there were races that you may be a bit more under pressure, so you have to drive, let's say, closer to 100 percent all the time. I think that's normal. I mean, I've done that also in the past, but that's a natural one. Yeah, teams are getting close to you. You know, in some races last year you didn't need to go to 100%. That's how it is.”

Speaking about their struggles over the last four races, Max Verstappen said:

“Not only set up. We had a few other issues as well that prevented us from having a clean weekend. Naturally, I think the last few tracks that we went to, you know, bumps, kerbs, you know that our car doesn't like that so much. So hopefully, it would be a bit more I'd say straightforward. I don't expect the same easy weekend because I think McLaren for example, they’ve been quick everywhere and I feel like they're going to be quick here as well. And with Mercedes and Ferrari, they seem like, you know lately, they have also made some good steps forward. So, for sure you know, when you can be quick in Monaco and Montreal when you don't have any kind of issues with kerbs anyway and you still have quite good performance in high speed, then it should also be quite easy.”

Ideally, Spain is an aero-efficient circuit, where Red Bull is expected to be back at the top. However, their rivals Ferrari and McLaren have also taken a significant leap and brought heavily upgraded cars. It will be very important for all three teams to make the best out of the triple-header weekend, as it will decide the pecking order going into the summer break. As it stands, Max Verstappen leads Charles Leclerc by 56 points and Lando Norris by a margin of 63 points. Red Bull are 49 points ahead of Ferrari and 89 points ahead of McLaren.