Red Bull currently does not have the colossal pace advantage it had over its rivals in 2023. With McLaren widely believed to be outperforming them, Max Verstappen has warned his team against small mistakes that could cost them the lead in the title battle with the Woking-based outfit.
“I think they did a great job. For our part, we still have to work a bit and analyze some things during the break.” Verstappen told Motorsport-Total.com.
https://t.co/wBvTAwTp6l (Ticker) – While McLaren denies having regularly had the fastest car of late, Max Verstappen says: “If you look at the last five or six races, they were definitely the best.”
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“There are still a lot of races left and a lot can happen. The title battle is not yet decided. If you make small mistakes, things can change very quickly.” he says.
Verstappen’s words are indeed objective, as Red Bull has failed to win a race since the Spanish Grand Prix, while Mercedes, on the other hand, has won two races after Spain, and McLaren won the last one, in Hungary.
The outlook for the upcoming season is therefore worrying for the Austrian team. Even Verstappen, who has a considerable lead of 76 points in the drivers’ standings, cannot rest easy until the end of the season, as Lando Norris is rapidly gaining ground on him.
For him, the Belgian Grand Prix could not have come at a worse time. The Dutchman is forced to serve a 10-place grid penalty and, despite taking pole position, has a colossal challenge ahead of him.
McLaren looking to reduce Verstappen’s lead
Although McLaren did not take pole, Verstappen admitted that the Woking team has enough pace to win. Even Charles Leclerc and George Russell reiterated his words over the weekend.
Verstappen, meanwhile, will start the race from eleventh position, where he will have to overcome drivers such as Fernando Alonso, Alex Albon and Esteban Ocon before trying to get onto the podium. McLaren thus has a considerable advantage, as its drivers start fourth and fifth.
Meanwhile, McLaren sacrificed qualifying to go with a lower downforce setup for race day. As a result, they were unable to match Red Bull’s pace in the wet conditions on Saturday. As such, Norris and Piastri are thought to be among the favourites to take the win.
Even dry conditions on Sunday would tip the balance in McLaren’s favour, as Verstappen has pointed out. Regardless, however, the Dutchman remains a strong contender to win at Spa and extend his championship lead.
