AUSTIN — Throughout the FIA Press Conference after the F1 Sprint Race at the United States Grand Prix, and as he walked out of the room, something was back for Max Verstappen.
A smile on his face.
After capturing pole position on Friday for the F1 Sprint, Verstappen delivered a wire-to-wire on Saturday. The result saw him pull two points further ahead of Lando Norris in their fight for the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship, and it also brought Red Bull two points closer to McLaren in the Constructors’ title fight.
“Yeah, I’m happy,” began Verstappen in the FIA Press Conference. “Yeah, it’s been, of course, quite a few races where it was more like just looking behind, never really being able to attack. And now, finally, the car definitely had just more performance. I could push a bit harder. So, yeah, very, very happy with today. I mean, looking at the whole race, I think Ferrari was also very quick. But for us, this was already much, much better.”
Verstappen was asked about the mood at Red Bull in recent weeks, weeks that have seen McLaren overtake them in the title fight. As the driver noted, the team simply focused on the things they could control.
“I think what has been very important for us in the last few races is to remain calm and just work on the problems,” said Verstappen. “And that’s what we have done as a team. Just focus on ourselves. That’s the only thing that you can influence and control.”
The results so far here in Austin seem to validate what has been coming from the Red Bull camp in recent weeks. As McLaren captured the lead in the title fight, Red Bull pointed to Austin as perhaps the moment where things could come together for them again.
Back in September Red Bull Senior Advisor Dr. Helmut Marko pointed to this week as decisive regarding whether the team could reverse their fortunes.
“We are having a tire test with Liam Lawson in Monza and at the same time our people will be analyzing where we should make adjustments. We have to find the point where we went wrong in development,” said Marko to Austrian outlet OE24. “We already have a few conclusive findings, now we have to implement the corresponding technical changes quickly so that the car has the right balance again. The next two races on the street circuits in Baku and Singapore are not very informative in this regard. Austin will show whether we can achieve the turnaround.”
It seems that turnaround is upon us, and it has brought a smile to Max Verstappen’s face again.
