Max: "This race made everything right"
Published on 23 August 2015 by Stefan Meens
After a quick chat with the FIA regarding his overtake on Valtteri Bottas (a chat without consequences for the Dutchman's classification), Max Verstappen addressed the Dutch press in the paddock. “I'm very happy with my race. To finish eighth after starting from P18 is a great result. I'm happy with my overtakes and the team had a good strategy planned for me.”
“At the start, everyone got off the line. At the first corner I was able to get past Raikkonen and Nasr, which was great. On the straight to Les Combes I past a McLaren and at Blanchimont I passed Alonso on the inside”, reflects Max on his opening lap.
After his first pitstop, Max rejoins the race behind Felipe Nasir. The Dutchman pulls of another overtake at Blancihmont, this time by going around the outside. “It was pretty difficult, but I thought 'I just have to try it, I need to get to the front'. I wasn’t afraid because there was enough run-off area”, reveals a brave Max before adding: “I had a good exit out of turn 15 and then I used all the power to get past Nasr. He judged the situation well and gave me enough space. In the end, the manoeuvre worked.”
During the final lap, Max tried to overtake Kimi Raikkonen for P7 but that move did not quite work out. “I would've easily been able to make the corner but Massa braked earlier due to his worn tyres. That's why I lost downforce. The result was I had to steer left instead of right. After that I decided to bring the car safely home.”
Eighth place gives Max four valuable world championship points, a result that came as a surprise. “I didn’t expect this. But our top speed was good because we took of a lot downforce which meant we didn’t use the full potential of the car. But the engine worked really well and we need to continue like this.”
As Spa-Francorchamps is close to were Max was born and currently lives, there were plenty of Dutch fans cheering the youngster on. “On the straights I had enough time to see him. It's really, really amazing to see all those people with their flags, standing up for you and cheering. It's great to score points but extra special here at my home track.”
Another bonus of driving at Spa means that Max will be home early. “I'll probably do about an hour and a half of simracing. Not with a beer. Probably with a glas of water or a Red Bull”, smiles Max.
