With two Grands Prix remaining, Max Verstappen remains a contender to claim this year’s title. The Dutchman did not expect to be in this position after his home race in Zandvoort. At that time, the gap between Verstappen and then championship leader Oscar Piastri was more than a hundred points. However, due to McLaren’s mistakes, Verstappen was able to turn the tide. ‘But if our car was as dominant as theirs, the championship would have been over long ago,’ says the world champion.
24 points. That’s the difference between championship leader Lando Norris and closest pursuers Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri ahead of the GP Qatar. Although the Brit holds the best cards, both the reigning world champion and Piastri are certainly not to be ruled out for the world title. Something Verstappen himself did not expect after Zandvoort. “I really thought the fight was over then,” the Dutch driver honestly tells Formula1.com. “But then we had the turnaround. We understood the car better, and were able to maximize a number of weekends, while McLaren couldn’t. Now we’re here, still with a good chance.”
However, Verstappen does not expect the title to come his way this year without a few mistakes from McLaren. “On the other hand, we also have to be realistic, because 24 points is still quite a gap. Even if everything goes perfectly from now on, we also need to be lucky that McLaren has a bad result,” continues the Red Bull driver, who also sees an advantage in his position. “That makes it easy for me to deal with: I have nothing to lose, so I’m going all out. If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, then it doesn’t.”
‘Five is better than four’
The world champion is then asked if he no longer dreams of a fifth world title. “Five is better than four. But if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t change anything in my life,” Verstappen responds pragmatically. “We also have to be realistic; we are still in the title fight because of others’ mistakes. We certainly haven’t done it wrong, and almost all races (with the exception of Barcelona) have been maximized. But if our car was as dominant as theirs (McLaren), the championship would have been over long ago.”
