Max Verstappen not thinking 'too much' about winning 2022 F1 championship title at Japanese GP 

Max Verstappen will get his second shot at securing the 2022 F1 World Championship title this weekend at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Verstappen said that while it would certainly be "extra special" to seal it at Suzuka, given Red Bull's association with Honda, he is not putting too much pressure on it. To secure the title this weekend, the Dutchman will either have to win the race with an extra point for the fastest lap or score eight more points than Charles Leclerc and six more points than his teammate Sergio Perez.

Speaking at the press conference ahead of the Japanese GP, Max Verstappen made it clear that his goal for the weekend is to maximize his result, just like any other GP weekend. He said:

“It would make it a little bit extra special because of our relationship with Honda. I think it was already a shame that we couldn’t be here last year already in a title fight, so that’s why we’re really looking forward to being back here and then we’ll see what happens. We need a perfect weekend, that’s for sure. I mean, it would be very nice if it happens here, but if it doesn’t happen here, I will be even more in favour the next race. It doesn’t really change anything; you want to have a good weekend and try to maximise everything you can, and of course I need a perfect weekend to be able to clinch the title here but, to be honest, I’m not really thinking about it too much.”

Speaking about his excitement about returning to Japan for the first time since 2019, he added:

“Yeah, [the fans] are very passionate, crazy – but in a good way – and they really dress up for it as well. You see quite a few people walking around with a DRS rear wing on their head for example. It shows you how popular motorsport is, in general, in Japan. I arrived in Tokyo, turned on the TV and the first thing that popped up was racing, again – a different category, but still. Great culture, and I think that’s why we all love coming here.”

---

"Max Verstappen should have been on pole" in Singapore, says F1 pundit

Max Verstappen got his first opportunity to secure his second consecutive championship title last weekend in Singapore. He, however, had a frustrating weekend with an underwhelming Friday, along with a difficult qualifying session on Saturday, where he was forced to abort his final flying lap in Q3 due to a lack of fuel in the car. F1 pundit Martin Brundle believes that his anger towards the team last weekend is a testament to his hunger for the 2022 title.

In his column for Sky Sports F1, the Briton wrote about Max Verstappen's weekend at the Singapore GP, stating:

“Verstappen should have been on pole position, but staying out on track for most of the final Q3 12 minutes meant that he was forced to abandon his final pole lap two corners from home to have enough fuel for the mandatory scrutineering checks. Cue an extremely unhappy championship leader, and he let the team know in no uncertain terms. Barely underneath the surface of the calm and serene, 2022 Max 2.0 is still quite a temper.”

“My take on that, as he heads to an inevitable second championship, is just how much pain a lost pole position and potential victory means to him despite his and the team's current dominance.”

While Max Verstappen could be crowned champion this weekend, it is worth noting that the Red Bull driver has never won the Japanese Grand Prix.