Max completes Spa-Francorchamps hattrick with another win
Published on 22 June 2014 by Stefan Meens
Max Verstappen has made it three out of three at Spa-Francorchamps. After clinching two sovereign victories on Saturday, Max concluded the fifth round of the FIA Formula 3 European championship with a third win. In contrast to the other two victories, the Van Amersfoort Racing driver did not have the luxury to start from the front row. Nevertheless, Max came from fifth on the grid to storm to another impressive win. It's the first time this year a driver has won all three races in a weekend.
“I feel absolutely amazing. To win three races in a row, in front of my home crowd and on the most beautiful track on the calendar is just terrific”, says Max. “It's my first race weekend at Spa so I didn’t expect this. I thought I could win one race but all three is special. I really want to thank the entire Van Amersfoort Racing team for this amazing weekend. The car was just perfect!”
Max starts the final race of the weekend from fifth after a rain swept and chaotic qualifying on Friday. As the field is unleashed at the start, Max overtakes two drivers at the first corner. Max: “I had good start and jumped two places. They didn’t defend that much so I was able to squeeze past them on the inside. That move was followed by a great run down to Eau Rouge.”
Polesitter Esteban Ocon gives away the lead but is able to regain it within the first lap. He is trailed by John Bryant-Meisner and Max. As the leaders enter their second lap, the Dutch talent pulls of a remarkable overtaking move to grab the lead of the race.
“After a good slipstream I overtook both in Les Combes. As I squeezed by Bryant-Meisner I thought 'I have to overtake Ocon now' as I was so close to him. Whenever an opportunity arises, you have to take it with both hands. When I finally pulled off the move of I was laughing inside, out of sheer joy!”
In lap three, Ocon mounts a charge by attempting to overtake Max on the Kemmel straight between Eau Rouge and Les Combes. “He tried to pass me on the outside. He got alongside me and almost overtook me. We touched as he steered in on my front wheel, there was even some smoke, but it ended well and I kept the lead.” Race control judged the incident by giving Ocon a driving standards warning.
However, the fight continues. In lap 4, Ocon fights his way past on the Kemmel straight but Max retaliates within the next corner sequence and regains the lead. “It was an honest fight for position”, Max reveals.
In the tenth lap, Antonio Giovinazzi and Hector Hurst collide at the Bus Stop chicane and similar to race 1 and 2, the safety car is called out on track. Despite leading, Max was not too happy with the safety car. “I suffered some understeer and being stuck behind the safety car doesn’t help.” Nevertheless, Max has a good restart and is able to consolidate his lead. “It was still a bit tricky in the last three laps as I was expecting an attack from Ocon. However, I managed to have a good exit out of the hairpins and chicanes so he didn’t really have an opportunity to attack.”
After fifteen laps, Max takes the chequered flag and his third win in a row, cheered on by many Belgian and Dutch fans. Ocon finishes in second with Gustavo Menezes occupying the last step of the podium. For Van Amersfoort Racing it was an all round good weekend as all three drivers scored points with Jules Szymkowiak claiming a solid eighth in the last race.
At the beginning of the weekend, Max was fifth in the championship but his three consecutive wins grant him third place with 155 points behind Blomqvist (174) and Ocon (268). “We've absolved 15 out of 33 races and I’m trailing a fair bit but I’m going to give it my all and if we can keep this form up, who knows...”
Max' next opportunity to close the gap in the championship comes up next week as the F3 paddock travels to Germany's Norisring. “Obviously we want to emulate the results of this weekend at the Norisring and I think we should be in good shape.”
FIA Formula 3 European Championship Round 5 – Spa-Francorchamps – Day 3, Sunday June 22:
Results race 3
Euro F3 drivers championship
Euro F3 rookie championship
Euro F3 team championship
