Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen is confident his injured body is ready to resume an intense Formula One title fight with Lewis Hamilton at Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
Verstappen’s major championship lead was cut from 33 points to eight after crashing at last weekend’s British GP. Hamilton wins at Silverstone despite taking a 10-second penalty for his role in the crash
Verstappen Spinning Off Track. It broke Red Bull’s five-race winning streak and gave Hamilton his first win in two months.
Verstappen’s car seat was broken, but the bones were not. He was discharged from the hospital that night after a precautionary check, and did simulation races this week for some additional assurance that he was fit to compete.
“I did a 24-hour sim race this week and it was a good test to see how my body would react to spending time in the same position and behind a screen for long periods of time,” he said.
“I felt absolutely fine which makes me feel positive over the weekend. I’m definitely ready to go again.”
Hamilton was nearly at Verstappen’s side when his Mercedes slashed Red Bull’s rear wheel, sending Verstappen into a tire wall.
The incident prompted much debate as to who is to blame, while two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso said it was only a racing incident and there was no penalty in any way.
Verstappen blamed Hamilton, posting a message on social network from his hospital bed on Sunday night, but he is trying not to get too distracted.
“I don’t have much to say at all the media hype, and to be honest I have no interest in getting into it. I know what happened at Silverstone when I was in the car and I felt a certain way That’s how my race ended,” he said.
“Now I’m just focused on making sure we’re the best we can be on track so that we can stay ahead in the championship. The team can take care of the official side of things and whatever needs to be looked at.” Is.”
Red Bull will do so on Thursday after successfully asking for a review of the incident. The governing body will hear new evidence from the FIA Red Bull, which must appear via video conference with team principal Christian Horner and two other witnesses.
“The crux of the matter is that we bring new evidence, new facts. But I cannot reveal these details,” Red Bull’s motorsport consultant Helmut Marko told RTL on Wednesday. “We hope to (get) a re-evaluation, because we still think the penalty was too low for Hamilton.”
Marko said a drive-thru time penalty or a one-race ban would be appropriate during the race.
Mercedes’ head of motorsport Toto Wolff has taken a diplomatic tone.
“Everyone has their own opinion on the events at Silverstone, and it was a very polarizing event,” Wolff said. “The most important thing is that Max is fine. It’s never nice to see a car crash, especially at such a high speed and in a corner like this, so we’re glad he survived the crash.”
Red Bull is finally matching Mercedes for speed after years of playing catch-up.
Verstappen has five of Hamilton’s four wins so far; Hamilton is 5-2 for pole position and 4-3 for the fastest lap going to Hungaroring, where Verstappen won his first pole two years ago.
He finished second last year after crashing before the start on the warmup lap and slamming the front wing into the barriers.
Mechanics had about 20 minutes to replace the front wing and suspension as Verstappen waited inside the cockpit.
“I enjoy Hungary as a track and hope there will be a little less action in the way of the grid,” said the 23-year-old Dutchman. “The mechanics worked some kind of miracle to get my car out for the last race of the year.”
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