Verstappen: 'I really enjoy being part of the Red Bull team'

Max Verstappen now has 39 Grand Prix victories to his name. Yet always in the minds of his fans will be that first victory in his then young career. At just 18 years old and only his first race for Red Bull Racing, Verstappen was the best in the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, at a circuit where he will be in action again this weekend.

So many times Verstappen has looked back to that one race in Barcelona, which was the beginning of a huge rollercoaster in which the Dutchman still finds himself. "Yeah, well, that weekend itself was crazy," Verstappen said on Thursday afternoon at the press conference ahead of the 2023 race. GPblog was also present there. "I mean, in the week leading up to it, I was in the simulator getting used to all the procedures because, OK, Red Bull might have two teams, but the cars at the time, they were very, very different to drive but also the whole steering wheel was different."

Horner advised to have fun

So these were days in which Verstappen got to grips with all the ins and outs of the Red Bull. "So, for me to go through all that and then already just sitting in the car, I drove out of the pits, there was so much more rake in the car, I could almost see my own front wing. So yeah, it was a big learning process throughout that whole weekend. And the funny thing was, I think Christian, before I jumped in the car before the race, he said: ‘Well, try to score some good points and have fun’. I definitely had some fun out there and it was really nice to win that race at the time."

Meanwhile, Verstappen stands at 39 wins, so he could reach 40 next weekend. Again at the circuit that has stood him in good stead twice before. "Of course, after that a lot of things have happened, a lot of positive things. And yeah, to have won the races I've won and, yeah, being on number 39… It's amazing, but it's also a bit like, well, we want to win more."

No big celebration after Monaco win

That is why he did not celebrate the win in Monaco last week in a big way. "So, it's not like we had a massive celebration, you know, we are in a very busy season and we want to win both championships again as a team. So we just keep on working. And honestly, I also really don't need that recognition. They know that I always give my 100%. And I know that it's also from their side, and I just really enjoy being part of the team and we just keep on working."