London Nov 4
Christian Horner, Team Principal of Red Bull Racing, was ecstatic after witnessing Max Verstappen's remarkable charge from P17 to P1 at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Verstappen's victory allowed him to extend his lead significantly in the drivers' standings and placing Red Bull within reach of the constructors' title.
The weekend at Interlagos began on a challenging note for Verstappen. After an unexpected red flag in Q2 prevented him from setting a fast lap, he qualified a disappointing P12. Further compounding his troubles, Verstappen was handed a five-place grid penalty for an engine change, relegating him to P17. Despite these setbacks, he showed his resilience, mastering the rain-soaked, incident-laden track and climbing through the field.
Horner, visibly impressed by Verstappen's recovery, summed up his thoughts on the Dutchman's performance: "It was a masterclass from Max. In difficult conditions on a very dreary day, he shone very brightly. To come from 17th on the grid, to have the patience, but also the attacking spirit... he had his start, his first lap was outstanding. I think he passed six cars on the first lap. To win from that far back was beyond our wildest dreams this morning," Horner told Formula 1.
Verstappen's race was boosted by a red flag that allowed Red Bull to change his tires without the usual time loss, enabling him to maintain his position during the pit stop cycle. Once back on track, he launched a successful charge to the front, eventually overtaking race leader Esteban Ocon. By setting the fastest laps consistently toward the end, Verstappen built an insurmountable 19.477-second gap over the rest of the field, ultimately claiming victory and an extra point for the fastest lap.
After a difficult stretch in recent races, Horner attributed Red Bull's return to form to the team's hard work at their Milton Keynes headquarters: "He had the pace, we had a great car today. I think it's testimony to the hard work in Milton Keynes that's going on behind the scenes. We've had a difficult patch, but everybody's worked hard to get back into a winning position. That's what we've done today, and Max used the car to full advantage."
With three race weekends left, Verstappen now leads Lando Norris by 62 points. Though it remains mathematically possible for Norris to catch up, Horner expressed confidence in Verstappen's ability to close out the title race: "Well look, it was a big hit today, but we've still got to close it out. The constructors' [championship] we still don't give up on. We missed an opportunity to have both scoring there today, but there are still three more opportunities."
The race results have left McLaren leading the constructors' standings with 593 points. Ferrari sits in second, 36 points behind, while Red Bull, closing the gap, trails in third by another 13 points. Red Bull's bid for the constructors' title, however, took a hit after Sergio Perez failed to score in Sao Paulo. Perez's race was marred by a spin on the opening lap, which dropped him to the back of the field. Although he fought valiantly to climb back, he ultimately finished 11th, missing out on the points by less than a second behind Lewis Hamilton.
Reflecting on Perez's race, Horner shared his frustration: "The spin on the first lap was annoying, and then he did his best to fight back. To finish out of the points today is frustrating when we had a fast car, but he'll brush himself down and fight back in Las Vegas."