Red Bull’s advertising slogan is ‘Give you wings’, but Max Verstappen had it all when he won the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The two-time Red Bull World Champion reported a bird strike early in the 70-lap race at Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and team principal Christian Horner provided further details.
“I think the greatest moment he had was hitting a bird that spent half the race distance behind the front right brake duct,” he told reporters.
“The remains of a bird.”
Verstappen told Sky Sports TV: “When I came in it was still stuck to my car, it didn’t look good. I’m also sorry the mechanic had to remove it.”
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The Dutch driver’s win was Red Bull’s 100th in F1 and Verstappen otherwise confidently led every lap from pole position, taking a 69-point lead over his Mexican team-mate Sergio Perez after eight of 22 laps.
Red Bull have won every race this season, Verstappen has won six of them and is on his way to breaking records.
The champion was so dominant that he has now led every round for more than three straight races – since 4:45 p.m. local time at the Miami Grand Prix on May 7 – and has been at the top of the standings for more than a year.
Held on an artificial island in the St. Lawrence River, the Canadian race has traditionally had an uneasy coexistence of local wildlife with Formula 1 cars, with marmots a regular hazard on the track.
The only other moment that gave Verstappen concern during the race was when he hit a curb just a little too hard.
“I almost passed out on the curb haha,” he giggled over the radio.
READ MORE | Canadian GP: Verstappen equals Senna’s record of F1 wins, Alonso and Hamilton also claim podiums
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