Verstappen performs optimally: 'Then you can see he rises above his material'

With a second position in Russia last Sunday, Max Verstappen did good business again. If we look at the whole season so far, he is the only one who has really been able to threaten Mercedes where all the other cars can't keep up. The fact is that the Mercedes is significantly better than Max Verstappen's RB16 and his ability to fight with Hamilton and Bottas says a lot about him as a driver.

Rises above itself

It is often said that Max Verstappen rises above himself and his equipment, because what he shows on the track in the certainly not perfect Red Bull car is at times unreal. Also because he is in a position where compromises have to be made every time, says Robert Doornbos in a video from Motorsport.com.

"That's something we often see of Max, that he really transcends the material. He's also in a position where he always has to compromise. The mighty Mercedes has the power, performance, downforce and grip, and Red Bull occasionally misses that, so you have to compromise by driving less downforce, so you're a little faster on the straights, but then you're short on corners again. Max does rise above itself in that sense."

Then you'd better stay home

Not only his positions and performance prove that, it becomes once again clear when the comparison with his teammate is drawn. Alexander Albon is clearly struggling alongside Verstappen and although Horner and Marko are standing up for him, it is becoming increasingly clear that the Thaise-Brit is not up to Verstappen.

Finally, Doornbos says: "And if you give your teammate 1.2 seconds distance, you'd better stay home." That gap in Russia was particularly large, where the Red Bull Racing leadership wants to see the gap narrow. An advantage for Verstappen was that he was able to hitch a ride with Bottas in his qualifying session, who gave the slipstream to the Dutchman on a silver platter.