You may assume a driver who has gained 19 of the final 20 Method 1 grands prix could be heartbroken when his automobile caught fireplace and retired simply 4 laps into the Australian Grand Prix.
However Max Verstappen reduce a relaxed and measured determine within the Albert Park paddock after the race, doing his media rounds as if it was a vanilla pre-event Thursday media day.
So what was the issue that lastly stopped the Verstappen/Purple Bull juggernaut and brought about his first retirement in two years?
“We may see within the information as quickly as lights went off, the precise rear brake simply caught on,” Verstappen defined to Sky Sports activities F1.
“The temperature simply saved on rising, it was mainly driving with the handbrake on. I already felt automobile was actually bizarre to drive in some corners. Very snappy.
“Whereas [during] the laps to the grid, the automobile was actually spot on. I used to be very proud of what we have been doing. However that explains if brake was caught on, that does not assist.”
There was not a touch of panic. When The Race requested him why he was so calm, Verstappen stated: “Properly it excites me in a approach [but] after all I would wish to win.
“We had a whole lot of good races in a row, a whole lot of mainly good reliability and I knew the day would come that you find yourself having a retirement and sadly that day was as we speak.”
When it was put to him that this race marked the primary time he and his former title adversary Lewis Hamilton (whose Mercedes engine failed in Melbourne) have each retired since their conflict on the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, Verstappen laughed it off with a “s*** occurs proper?”.
“After all I am disenchanted with not with the ability to end the race as a result of I feel we may have an excellent shot at profitable as a result of the stability felt fairly good on laps to the grid,” he defined.
“I felt assured and an excellent enchancment in comparison with what I felt in lengthy runs I did in follow. However some issues you may’t management.”
He stated shedding an opportunity to equal his personal report for probably the most consecutive race wins “does not actually matter” and “so long as we win the championship, that is a very powerful”.
Verstappen did not rush by way of his post-race interview and patiently took a mess of variations of the identical query.
On whether or not we are able to count on an identical post-Singapore fightback just like the domination he inflicted on the sphere at Suzuka final yr in response to the one non-Purple Bull win of 2023, Verstappen stated “No I do know I am assured with the automobile, I really feel good particularly yesterday [Saturday], we should not have been on pole however laps we did have been actually good.
“I simply need to have an excellent weekend once more and really feel good with the automobile.”
He even had time to shrug off revealing any particulars a couple of potential Purple Bull improve on the Japanese Grand Prix: “Properly the color would be the similar. You will note.”
The results of Verstappen’s retirement are restricted. His team-mate Sergio Perez’s underwhelming race means Verstappen nonetheless leads the world championship by 4 factors over Charles Leclerc and 5 over Perez, with Melbourne winner Carlos Sainz’s Jeddah absence leaving him 11 adrift.
Purple Bull will examine the problem totally earlier than Suzuka and Verstappen has little question the problem shall be squashed.
The power of the RB20 will inevitably have helped Verstappen’s manner versus a few of his earlier DNFs.
Although he was handed on monitor by Sainz earlier than retiring, his Purple Bull was already wounded by that time. He is aware of he is nonetheless received one of the best automobile within the subject and yet one more than able to helping him to a fourth successive drivers’ championship. His title bid will not be beneath menace prefer it doubtlessly was when he retired from two of 2022’s first three races.
However it’s additionally an indication of his ever-growing maturity, a correct (profitable) public take a look at of his religion within the group and one more factor to admire about F1’s elite driver.