Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies believes the season is heading towards a thrilling climax. Max Verstappen is on a sensational comeback trail, and with five races and two sprint races remaining, a title defense suddenly seems a realistic option for the four-time world champion from Red Bull. Or, as Mekies puts it: “The Formula 1 world is witnessing history in the making.”
Verstappen won the sprint race in Austin on Saturday and convincingly claimed the American Grand Prix the following day. Mekies: “Max surprises us every time he hits the track. He surprises us with how much he pushes us between sessions and with his instinct for things we can sometimes see and also for things we sometimes can’t see. So watching him is like watching history in the making.”
The gap between Verstappen and World Championship leader Oscar Piastri has shrunk to forty points. The chances of a title defense are suddenly very much alive. Mekies emphasizes that he is not applying any mathematical models.
“We don’t make these calculations and we’re not going to. On the way to Mexico, we will have good discussions about what we can do and what limited us here in Austin. Was McLaren really that far away or will we get a wake-up call in Mexico? That’s how we approach it. But if you look at Max’s string of results since the Dutch GP in Zandvoort, it’s of course excellent: second, first, first, second, first. Everyone can be proud of that, including the people in the factory. And we will, of course, try to continue this beautiful series,” says Laurent Mekies.
