"Magic" Max Verstappen continues to make Formula 1 boring
When victories are taken for granted, the jubilation is a little more restrained. "Thanks guys, that was great," said world champion Max Verstappen after his victory in Brazil, the 17th in the 20th race of the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship season. Behind him, his equally stubborn and hopeless rival Lando Norris in the McLaren took second place ahead of two-time world champion Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin, who won a tough millimetre duel against Sergio Perez on the last lap.
"Both starts were very good, then the whole race was about managing the tires," said Verstappen: "It was a very good race." However, he was not bored: "You always have to be focused, you can't afford to be careless." Lando Norris found both starts "difficult, but it couldn't have gone any better". Verstappen simply had "an answer for everything, which is somehow a shame".
At the first start, the field only made it as far as the first corner before the safety car was deployed. A collision between Alexander Albon in the Williams and Kevin Magnussen in the Haas, in which the latter's team-mate Nico Hülkenberg was also involved, forced the red flag. It was not until half an hour later that the restart took place, which had little new to offer: Verstappen ran away from the field at the front on both the first and second attempts.
The course of the race is quickly recounted
Charles Leclerc, second in qualifying, already had nothing to do with the action. The hydraulics on his Ferrari failed on the warm-up lap, Leclerc was no longer able to steer and ended up in the barrier. "Why do I always have such bad luck?" said the Monegasque with pure despair in his voice. His team-mate Carlos Sainz was also not really happy with his company car. "Can we throw this clutch away when we get back home," he asked on the pit radio.
As is so often the case this season, the course of the race is quickly recounted. Verstappen drove in front, pursued by the doggedly fighting Lando Norris in the McLaren. As soon as Norris got too close to him, Verstappen simply set a new fastest lap - his dominance crushed the competition and, to a certain extent, the fascination of Formula 1. There was nothing to gain for Nico Hülkenberg. After a difficult race for him, the driver from Emmerich finished in twelfth place, with the podium still a long way off for him in his 201st Grand Prix.
While Verstappen dominated Formula 1 in a way that only Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton came close to doing before him, teams and drivers in Sao Paulo were concerned about the future of the sprint format. The criticism is mainly focused on the fact that qualifying for the Grand Prix takes place on Friday and there is only one 60-minute practice session on the sprint weekends.
The proposals for renewal are basically not that new. The focus is on starting the sprint race with a reverse grid, i.e. in reverse order of the qualifying results - which certainly harbors potential dangers given the difference in performance between the cars. Another option would be an individual time trial, but a valid idea for holding one has not yet been put on the table.
In the midst of Verstappen's continued dominance, Nico Hülkenberg from Emmerich struggled in the race, eventually finishing in twelfth place. This was far from his first Grand Prix, marking his 201st appearance in Formula 1. (Nico Hülkenberg, Formula 1)
Despite McLaren's best efforts, with Lando Norris securing a second-place finish, neither he nor his rival Max Verstappen in Red Bull Racing could shake the monotony that has been creeping into Formula 1, much to the disappointment of Ferrari (Formula 1) fans. (Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, McLaren, Ferrari (Formula 1))
Source: www.ntv.de
