Max Verstappen wins in Singapore for the first time: whilst Laurent Mekies praises his pace, Red Bull admits there is still room for improvement in his start
Max Verstappen has won the Singapore Grand Prix for the first time. After a strong performance over the full distance, the Red Bull driver is satisfied – though, as usual, he remains reserved in his assessment of his start. Team principal Laurent Mekies highlights Verstappen’s pace in particular, but admits there is still room for improvement when it comes to the starts.
“Yes, it took a while, but I think this race was very good,” says Verstappen after his first victory in Singapore. “We had pace when we needed it, on both the soft and medium tyres.”
Admittedly, the medium tyres were a bit trickier for all drivers, explains the Dutchman, “but it worked”. His delight at the success was correspondingly great: “Of course I’m very happy to win here.”
Verstappen just about good enough at the start
There had certainly been some uncertainty ahead of the race. Verstappen hadn’t always got off to the best start recently. When asked whether he had been nervous before the lights went out, he replied succinctly: “You always try to do your best, and luckily it was just good enough.”
Laurent Mekies also made it clear in an interview with Sky that Red Bull is not yet where the team would like to be in this regard. “It’s certainly one of the areas where we know we still have a lot of work to do,” says the Red Bull team principal. “We’re not the benchmark there yet, and Ferrari is probably the benchmark when it comes to start performance.”
The starting position was therefore not without risk: Verstappen started ahead of two Ferraris. “We knew what risk was involved,” explains Mekies. However, Verstappen and the team had managed the situation just well enough to hold onto the lead. “That was an important part of the race,” emphasises the Frenchman.
Mekies raves about Verstappen’s pace
Apart from the start, Mekies is particularly impressed by Verstappen’s speed. The Dutchman had already shown an exceptionally high pace on Friday and was able to increase it further as the weekend progressed.
“To be honest: first and foremost, an incredible pace – an incredible pace since Friday,” says Mekies. “Max was practically unbeatable right from the start and still managed to step it up a notch.”
The team principal particularly emphasised that Verstappen was able to maintain his pace under varying conditions. During the race, there was a mix of soft and medium tyres, as well as new and used tyres. Nevertheless, Verstappen was able to pull away in almost all conditions.
“In a long race with very varied conditions – softs, mediums, new tyres, used tyres – he was able to pull away in practically all circumstances,” says Mekies. That was an impressive performance.
Red Bull sees progress in recent weeks
Mekies also attributes the performance to the car’s development. It is very encouraging for the team to have unlocked so much additional performance in recent weeks and months. Verstappen’s performance was once again a key factor in this.
” “We’re used to Max’s magic, but this weekend he’s shown even more,” says Mekies. Singapore had previously been the only Grand Prix that Verstappen had not yet managed to win. Now he has closed that gap in his record as well. “I think he won this race in impressive fashion,” says Mekies.
