“It was an incredible season, not just this race,” said Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull) after winning his first Formula 1 world title in the last lap of the last Grand Prix this Sunday in Abu Dhabi.
“We’ve had a tough time, but that’s part of the title fight,” he said of his great rival, Briton Lewis Hamilton, whose Mercedes team unsuccessfully submitted two requests for the title. race results.
Discover the champion’s statements
Q: How to rate this race?
A: “French! At the beginning we clearly lacked rhythm. I tried to follow him (Lewis Hamilton, his title opponent, who was in front) as much as I could, but we had no rhythm. ‘was not very good. difficult, he was a bit isolated. Later Czech (Pérez, his teammate) did a very good job trying to keep Lewis behind (after the Briton passed through the pits) and the The gap narrowed. We tried something else (changing the tires) during the virtual safety car, but it didn’t work, we still didn’t have the pace. And then everything went crazy at the end , with the ‘safety car’ and then the restart. (…) It is true that it seems complicated at times, I did not see the opportunity to change the course of things. offered some extra refueling and we took the opportunity to switch to softer tires, and with that the last rear was just amazing. ‘grip (than Hamilton), but we had to do what we were doing. (…) Also, I had a huge leg cramp. But on the last lap, we had to bite the bullet. After that, it was just mind-blowing emotions. “
Q: Are you starting to digest these emotions?
A: “Little by little. It was an incredible season, not just this race. Incredible competitions … Before the start of the season, I felt like we might have better chances than those lost in recent years, but to be there at the end was an incredible achievement. (…) The past comes to mind, especially when crossing Europe with my father (at the time of the kart) We had a first objective: to reach Formula 1, hope to win a race and hear the National anthem. But then, it’s true, the ultimate goal was the world title, something that is very difficult to win. Now that it’s here, it’s crazy. And having my loved ones, my family, my friends, my dad, my manager, my girlfriend, everyone here makes it more special. “
Q: Your rivalry with Lewis Hamilton has been exceptional. What are you hiding from him?
A: “Overall I enjoyed it a lot. We had some tough times, but it’s part of the title fight (…) and now that the season is over we are going to be able to relax a bit. Little. It was tense because competition. or almost, we pushed our rival to the limit, mutually. I think it was beautiful to see. “
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