“Only he can do that.”
Max Verstappen has actually received high praise, especially when he comes from multiple world champions of smiles.
Fernando Alonso did not hide his praise when Verstappen crossed the line and took two McLaren drivers to pole position at Suzuka. The Spaniard has long been a fan of Verstappen’s abilities, but even he seemed doubly impressed by what he just saw.
“He’s a great driver,” Alonso said. “He proves that every weekend. He wears a hat for him. I think he’s the only rap he did today. I don’t think the car is on the level that is obviously on the level to fight for poles and the top five.
It was a truly amazing rap. Verstappen had no right to participate in the pole position mix. I don’t think that when Q3 starts to run, anyone in the right mind would have chosen him. It’s Max Verstappen.
But the way he not only committed so much on his qualifying laps, but he was also executed was amazing to see.
Let’s not ignore the fact that both McLaren drivers may have beaten that late period. Maybe they too Should He beat that lap time. Had Lando Norris put together his first lap better, he would have been in a position to attack his final run with less risk, and despite being the fastest in the next two sectors, it has proven to be too costly to disable.
But they didn’t, and it’s difficult to find many other drivers who would have been able to give them better time than Verstappen had in the first place.
“Today we looked like we had a very competitive car,” said Andrea Stella, principal of the McLaren team. “The strong rap by both Rand and Oscar in the first and second quarter, the first run of the third quarter by Oscar. So it looked like we were heading for pole position. Rand was able to improve significantly in his second set…
“But I think I stopped surprise at Max. He’s an incredible driver. And for me, this is one of many cases where we’re not just saying that Max wears a hat.
“I think it’s actually the fastest time in Suzuka with high grip and lap times. That’s for some gasoline in itself, because I actually discussed this with the engineers and thought I wouldn’t beat the 2019 car.
“I wish it was McLaren, but it’s the biggest.”
I have to admit, I had a feature titled “Verstappen’s Primed of Shonementsmone Shonementsmince”, which was half-flipped after the Australian Grand Prix, but I have never completed it any more than this weekend, as other issues with Red Bull took over. Maybe it’ll still be over at some point, but you don’t need to say he might do something special now – he shows you that he might be.
If it is formed, Verstappen will not win on Sunday. McLaren is clearly fast on one lap, with both drivers ready to attack right behind. If the team appears to be too tough in the opening part of the race, they can take advantage of the fact that they will try something different strategically, compared to Verstappen from the Red Bull perspective, compared to having two cars in the fight.
But fortunately, competition doesn’t always form for all sports fans. The weather appears to play a role in some way, but wet Verstappen is a difficult combination to beat, regardless of the car he is driving.
Suzuka is also not impossible, but not the easiest truck to overtake, so Verstappen will not swing McLaren at any stage. His final stint in China shows that his car could compete with certain conditions or certain tire compounds, and the same compounds he was making quicker are being used again as medium this weekend.
Even if such a level of performance was impressive, I’m the first to admit that when Verstappen easily won everything, it was boring. The same goes for Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, whether the car was in the dominant stage or not. Seeing the same name on the top of the timing screen every weekend is certainly not the most exciting situation when it comes to engage with a larger fan base.
But Verstappen, starting with pole position this weekend, is extremely appealing as he puts pressure on two McLaren drivers to chase and finds a way to beat each other.
The weekend began with a big scrutiny of the situation for Red Bull drivers. I also focused on Verstappen’s frustration with the change in the lineup when there were obvious weaknesses that the car had to deal with.
These weaknesses aren’t gone, but Verstappen continues to handle them, perfectly reminding us of the reason Red Bull makes such a brutal move in Dutch championship opportunities and future with the team.
As Alonso said, he can create something magical.