Verstappen happy despite missing podium

2016 Canadian Grand Prix

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Max Verstappen believes Red Bull achieved the maximum result they could in Canada with fourth place, but admits he was eyeing a podium finish.

The Red Bull driver used a two stop strategy to secure fourth place after both Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo had tyre concerns during the race.

“It was a good race,” says Verstappen. “Just a shame that we didn’t finish on the podium in front of Williams.”

“I think we realised very early that we had too much degradation on the tyres, and then you try to make the best of it and I think that’s what we definitely did today.”

Having jumped his team mate at the start, Verstappen had received a call in the early stages not to hold Ricciardo up, but managed to control his pace accordingly.

“I was just saving my tyres,” explains Verstappen.

“I knew I couldn’t keep up with the first two, so I was just controlling a bit, saving the fuel, and when they told me that message it was ‘okay, now I start to push again’. So I opened up the gap and there was no issue any more.”

Verstappen could not challenge Valtteri Bottas for the final podium position and came under intense pressure from Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes in the closing laps of the race, before Rosberg spun at the chicane on lap 69.

“That was a very long time in fourth,” says Verstappen. “I thought ‘okay, I don’t want to give up this position’. I knew it was going to be hard and I fought for it and luckily we stayed fourth.”

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Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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7 comments on “Verstappen happy despite missing podium”

  1. “I was just saving my tyres,”
    and when they told me that message it was ‘okay, now I start to push again’. So I opened up the gap and there was no issue any more.”
    Take that Ricciardo

    1. Watching Verstappen and Rosberg in those last few laps was the best part of the race. What a racer this youngster is.

  2. Ia… Ric was in front of Ves and was balked by Nico..Ves got a lucky break to be in front watch the reply…

    1. Sour grapes. Verstappen was the better driver today. Good positioning at the start, better pace, no mistakes ruining his tyres.

    2. Every driver has luck or bad luck in a race. The endless stories of “what if”.
      Hamilton was lucky that Ferrari chose other strategy. Hamilton was lucky that he didn’t crash out against Nico.
      We can go on like that about every driver bad luck or luck.
      Btw Ricciardo was not clear ahead of his teammate, because you don’t know who had the higher speed at the moment that Ric was held up a little. Still he couldn’t follow Max.

      Ricciardo admitted: “His teammate Max Verstappen placed as high as P4 while Ricciardo admitted that he couldn’t match his pace”.

    3. Ric wasnt in front of Verstappen….Verstappen was half a car length ahead in the 2nd corner.

  3. Ia ric had the higher speed better line if he wasnt balked

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