Gasly left shocked at racing wheel-to-wheel with Verstappen at the British GP

11:02, 14 Jul

byHidde Korte

At the British Grand Prix in Silverstone, Max Verstappen had to settle for fifth place. Despite an impressive qualifying performance, changing weather conditions disrupted his race strategy. At one point, he even found himself battling with Pierre Gasly, who later admitted he was surprised to be racing wheel-to-wheel with the reigning world champion.

After the race, Gasly told GPblog and others about his race and the fight with Verstappen. ‘

"Honestly, I don't really know where to start because, P6, the start of the weekend, no one would have ever imagined that we would be in such a position to be fighting Fernando at the start of the race.

"I managed to get past him on the wet, I was feeling extremely good and right behind Lewis, eventually managing to get past him as well before the safety car and, battling with Max at the end, who was on pole yesterday, I mean at some point I wonder what the heck was going on in my race!"

Underlying problems at Red Bull were painfully exposed

Verstappen's drop down the order during the race was largely due to Red Bull's setup gamble. The team had opted for a configuration suited to dry conditions, only to be caught out by the wet weather that hit Silverstone on Sunday. As a result, Verstappen could manage no better than fifth place. It capped off a turbulent week for Red Bull, one that ended with the dismissal of team principal Christian Horner just days after the Grand Prix.

Verstappen's future with Red Bull remains uncertain. His presence in Sardinia, coinciding with Toto Wolff's stay, sparked fresh speculation about a possible move to Mercedes. However, GPblog clarified that the timing was purely coincidental.

Whether the Dutchman will remain with Red Bull next season is still up in the air.