The more than twenty journalists who have gathered in a circle around him tried in every possible way to lure him into making a statement. Did he have a favorite track to become world champion? Does he prefer to take the title as early as possible? How do you avoid complacency with such a huge advantage? But Max Verstappen was not tempted for a moment on the circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, where the F1 season will resume on Sunday. He does not want to talk about the world title yet. “A lot can still go wrong.”
Outside the Red Bull team building, where Verstappen spoke to the press at a table, no one in Belgium doubted on Thursday that the 24-year-old Dutchman will be two-time world champion in a few months.
With nine races to go, Verstappen has no less than eighty points more than his Ferrari rival Charles Leclerc. The chance of a dramatic turnaround is nil; Verstappen has been performing extremely consistently for seasons. In all races since 2020 in which nothing out of the ordinary happened to him, such as engine trouble or damage, he was on the podium (39 times in 52 races).
Never satisfied
That series is a result of his stoic approach. It is never good enough for him, he is never satisfied. Not even now that he is heading for his second title. A year ago, Verstappen fought a nerve-racking title fight with Lewis Hamilton. In it, his maximum lead was more than twenty points only once. Any mistake or failure could then have fatal consequences in view of his title chances.
Verstappen experiences that permanent pressure considerably less this season. With his current lead, he could even retire several races without losing the World Cup lead. Does that make him feel more relaxed? ‘That would be wrong. A lot can still go wrong, or right,’ he immediately parried. “Our intention is to win more races and that’s how we go into the remaining races. So we are not going to give away victories to other teams just to be safe, because a second or third place would also be good. That’s not how we work.’
He was crystal clear about the threat of laziness. “That’s not allowed and if it were, it’s time to stop racing. Then you don’t want it badly enough anymore.’
Verstappen still really wants to. He looked rested on Thursday. During the barely a month-long summer break, he had spent most of his time with his family. Especially not traveling for a while did him good. ‘But at a certain point I was like: it can start again.’
There is already talk aloud within the paddock about when and where Verstappen could take the title. In his own words, he is not involved in that at all. “We don’t know what’s going to happen next. For example, everyone still has to take penalties for engine changes. So we just have to do the best we can every race and if I thought about that kind of thing, mistakes might creep in. So it’s crazy to talk about this now.’
In addition, according to Verstappen, his large lead is not representative of the power differences on the circuit. Ferrari was at least as fast in many races this season, he argued. “Of course, we never expected this lead,” he said about the big difference in points, which he also owes in large part to numerous bad luck and strategic blunders at the Italians. “But there hasn’t really been a race that we completely dominated. The differences are small and I expect it to remain that way for the rest of the season.”
In Belgium, for example, Verstappen kept doing his best in all his answers not to label himself as an even bigger title favorite. Once he showed that he was busy with other things than just the next race. The record number of victories in one season was briefly discussed. Verstappen is on eight wins this season and immediately knows that he needs five more wins to equal Sebastian Vettel’s 2013 record (thirteen wins).
Whether that milestone is an extra motivation this season? “If that works, that would be great,” he said, then immediately tempered himself. ‘But it’s been bad all year round close with Ferrari, so I don’t think it will be easy to get that record.’