Max Verstappen, F1 Red Bull team's driver has stated that the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix surprised himself. According to Verstappen, if Mercedes struggles with tyre issues in the Spanish Grand Prix then the chances for Red Bull to take lead is high.
The softer tyre compounds and the soaring heat made way for Red Bull to the victory lane. Verstappen was able to beat the Silver Arrows for the first time in 2020 since both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas suffered tyre failures.
When Verstappen was asked whether he was confident in beating Mercedes prior the race, he replied- “Not before the race. I thought that I could have a good race, but I still thought they would drive off a little. But they got massive tyre issues, so then from our side, we didn’t really have that. That’s why I think we were so competitive.”
Also See: Shovlin: Tyres Issues Could Occur In The Spanish Grand Prix
There are different factors that could provide an opportunity for the Red Bull team to overtake the Mercedes team to win a pole position in the Spanish Grand Prix that is to be conducted at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya . Even though Mercedes plans to use the hardest tyre compound, Red Bull's RB16 has chances to take away pole position since their car does not appear to have trouble in hot conditions comparing to the Mercedes W11.
Max Verstappen was asked whether he could win the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix champion title and his reply was : “I don’t know at the moment… If we have a weekend like the last weekend in Silverstone then yes. But if we have the scenarios like all the other weekends, then absolutely not.
He added that- “It’s nice and warm, that’s good, but we run the harder compounds again, so a bit tricky to say. I know this track can be quite hard on tyres, but we just have to wait and see."
Verstappen is now 30 points behind the leader Lewis Hamilton and ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the driver's standing list.
