After winning his third race on the trot, Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen said that the pace was incredible in the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday.
“The pace was incredible on both tyre compounds. To win again at home at the Red Bull Ring is just incredible. I expected it to be good, but not this good and the car was on rails. It was really nice to drive. I could push and also look after the tyres which is exactly how you want it to be and I could extend my gap lap after lap," said the Dutchman.
“Just like everyone else, we learnt from last weekend and we optimised the car even more by improving the set-up. It’s actually hard to put into words because it was so enjoyable to drive and the weekend was the best it could be, so let’s hope we can carry on in the same way. It’s a great reward for everyone in the team and it was also very nice to have Honda represented on the podium by Tanabe," he added.
Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas finished second, while McLaren’s Lando Norris came in third.
When it comes to the driver standings, Verstappen leads with 182 points, while Hamilton is second with 150. Red Bull Racing’s Sergio Perez has 104, while Norris has 101.
Bottas said: "For me personally, P2 one place better than last week and I started from fifth so not a bad afternoon. I think as a team we got some decent points considering the gap we have to Red Bull in terms of pure pace. For me it's nice to be on the podium again in second place and I think we really maximised what we could get."
Hamilton said: “It's not the result I wanted but it's still some decent points. I sustained some damage just before I overtook Lando - the rear of the car started to feel strange and it just got worse throughout the race. Otherwise, it would have been a straightforward second place for me. Max is clear out front at the moment so we need improve our car and start performing better each weekend."
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