A filmmaker with a soft spot for Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve, Mika Hakkinen and above all, Tazio Nuvolari and Ayrton Senna, is also a diehard Formula One fan since the age of 4 (mid-90's). An avid researcher of the past of Grand Prix Racing since before it was even named F1, and with a thirst for knowledge of the ins and outs of the actuality of the sport, as well as for the technical aspects that define it, is a member of GPblog since 2023, where he has put his love of racing to good use.
For Max Verstappen, the difficult sprint race in China came as no surprise. The Dutchman knew in advance that it would be an uphill battle to try and hang on to his P2 starting spot, but still tried to have a go at Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton.
''Yes, nothing unexpected. It's obviously not what you want, but it's the reality,'' Verstappen stated to Viaplay after the sprint race. ''The whole race I had to manage a lot. You can see from the lap times how much slower we went at the end.''
Verstappen puts pressure on Hamilton
Early in the race, Verstappen still did everything he could to pressure Hamilton, getting within the Briton's DRS range, but he never really got close enough to mount an attack on the eventual winner of the sprint, as Hamilton slipped away from his grasp, leaving th Dutchman to fend off the attacks of Oscar Piastri.
''He (Hamilton) was also managing a lot and I had Oscar (Piastri) behind me who was also trying to overtake [me]. It was just very tricky. I could also drive my own pace the whole race, but then you fall back after two-three laps. Of course I'm trying something, but it's just difficult at the moment,'' Verstappen concluded.
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This article was written in collaboration with Tim Kraaij.
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