2023-08-01 08:07:38
(Motorsport-Total.com) – In view of his dominance in Formula 1, Max Verstappen has every reason to be “a bit cheeky”, says Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, referring to the Dutchman’s pit radio at the weekend in Spa.
Max Verstappen’s wave of success just doesn’t ebb – on the contrary
There, the Red Bull driver drove to another dominant win when he joked with his team over the radio that, given his large lead over the competition, he might want to make an extra stop to give his mechanics a little more training when changing tires .
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner later explained that the idea was rejected because there was a risk it might go wrong and make the team look stupid.
Verstappen’s radio call for an extra stop led some to believe he might be getting a little cocky with his attitude, but from rival Mercedes’ point of view, Verstappen’s behavior wasn’t too brazen.
So says Mercedes team boss Wolff: “He has every reason to be a bit cheeky. He just drives around everyone else, that’s his merit, and there’s nothing more to say regarding it. You have to acknowledge that, even if it’s annoying is.”
The Austrian believes the rest of the field is now on par with Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez, while the Dutchman is a step ahead of everyone.
F1 show: The race analysis Spa
Kevin Scheuren & Christian Nimmervoll recap what happened on Sunday at the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
to the video section
“You just have to take Max out of the equation,” explains Wolff. “The second Red Bull is where we are. It would have been a fantastic season and a close race (without Verstappen; editor’s note), but the timer never lies. There’s a guy and a car that’s over everything is in order and we just have to catch up.”
Although the gaps between Verstappen and the rest of the field were wider than they were at Spa a year ago, the Mercedes team boss believes this does not reflect the true competitive picture in Formula 1 and points to the progress the team has made with this year’s made car.
“Last year Spa was a terrible race and this time before the last stop Perez, Leclerc and we were within six or eight seconds. So that’s a big step for us because Spa was a disaster in 2022,” said Wolff.
“We feel like we’ve made that step, but then there’s this frontrunner who’s another step ahead. We just have to reverse that.”
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