monkey66
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Exert from Matthew Syed writing in The Times (UK) today.
'Max Verstappen is no shrinking violet. At the Spanish Grand Prix he started behind Lewis Hamilton on the grid but — to repeat the phrase of the commentator — “got his elbows out on turn one”. In effect, he pushed his vehicle into a position where Hamilton had Hobson’s choice: either cede the lead or crash. Hamilton, a driver who has long surfed a reasonable line between aggression and respect, chose to cede the lead.
This is a recurring theme in the career of Verstappen, a 23-year-old with raw talent fused with keen ambition. And it is a characteristic that Christian Horner, his principal at Red Bull, has eulogised many times in the past, not least in the aftermath of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, when the racers touched wheels and Hamilton again yielded ground.
In the aftermath of Spain, Horner might have cautioned Verstappen for taking undue risks. He might have urged his driver to avoid flirting with contact. But no, he was almost euphoric: “Turn one was mega. I mean, that was full Max Verstappen — he was just going for it — and he positioned the car fantastically well. He tucked in, he got a little bit of a tow and a bit of momentum. And yeah, he just braked later and ran the car wide. Thankfully Lewis had got out of it, because otherwise he would have ended up in the fence.”
Given the events of Sunday at Silverstone, it is worth pausing to reflect on this wider context. For what Horner is eulogising here (and has done many times) is the aggression of his driver. He is celebrating the way that he places his car in harm’s way, in effect playing chicken with his rivals. He is articulating a truth that everyone knows about Verstappen: “I take no prisoners, so don’t mess!”'
'Max Verstappen is no shrinking violet. At the Spanish Grand Prix he started behind Lewis Hamilton on the grid but — to repeat the phrase of the commentator — “got his elbows out on turn one”. In effect, he pushed his vehicle into a position where Hamilton had Hobson’s choice: either cede the lead or crash. Hamilton, a driver who has long surfed a reasonable line between aggression and respect, chose to cede the lead.
This is a recurring theme in the career of Verstappen, a 23-year-old with raw talent fused with keen ambition. And it is a characteristic that Christian Horner, his principal at Red Bull, has eulogised many times in the past, not least in the aftermath of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, when the racers touched wheels and Hamilton again yielded ground.
In the aftermath of Spain, Horner might have cautioned Verstappen for taking undue risks. He might have urged his driver to avoid flirting with contact. But no, he was almost euphoric: “Turn one was mega. I mean, that was full Max Verstappen — he was just going for it — and he positioned the car fantastically well. He tucked in, he got a little bit of a tow and a bit of momentum. And yeah, he just braked later and ran the car wide. Thankfully Lewis had got out of it, because otherwise he would have ended up in the fence.”
Given the events of Sunday at Silverstone, it is worth pausing to reflect on this wider context. For what Horner is eulogising here (and has done many times) is the aggression of his driver. He is celebrating the way that he places his car in harm’s way, in effect playing chicken with his rivals. He is articulating a truth that everyone knows about Verstappen: “I take no prisoners, so don’t mess!”'
