With a victory that served as a welcome reminder that he is well on his way to securing his fourth world title, Max Verstappen shined in the spring sunshine of the Japanese Grand Prix’s new early season slot. In his current form, he seems all but invincible.
Max Verstappen Wins At A Canter
Starting from pole position, Verstappen won at a canter, leading the race without incident or opposition. So much so that it didn’t even seem to have elicited a single superlative from the Dutchman, who is, as we’ve seen this season, taking the wins very much in stride.
“Excellent, everything proceeded quite smoothly,” he remarked as he ascended from the cockpit. “The strategy, the pit stops, it couldn’t have been better.” On what he constantly termed as a “nice” trip, it appeared that he had barely perspired. Not quite the gladiatorial victory of a champion shouting, “Are you not entertained?” as Formula One tries to market it to the wave of new fans it has attracted lately.
If the world champion is in danger right now, he doesn’t seem to care. He declared, “Whenever I needed to go faster, I could. Whenever I needed to take care of my tires, I could.” His demeanor was the same cool, collected, and unimpressive understatement that helped him win the race.
Max Verstappen In His Business
For Verstappen, it was business as usual, albeit with a distinctly foreboding vibe. After four of the record 24 races have already been completed, there are still 20 races left in the year. While Verstappen may view this as a victory march or leisurely walk, his opponents appear to view it as a protracted slog.
After a red flag on the opening lap, the Red Bull driver easily defeated his colleague Sergio Pérez to take second place with a 12.5-second lead. Daniel Ricciardo and Alex Albon had clashed approaching turn three, leaving both of them on the wall. Both drivers emerged unscathed from extremely powerful and spectacular crashes.
Carlos Sainz Comes 3rd
Carlos Sainz of Ferrari was the closest competitor who wasn’t operating a Red Bull, coming in third place, 20 seconds behind the leader. There was hope that Ferrari was starting to stage a comeback after Sainz had won at the previous round in Australia and Verstappen had retired due to a brake issue.
Instead of a comeback of that kind, Verstappen was going to solidify the dominance he had built up during the season. He has easily won three of the races, and his continued consistency is impressive. He has only lost twice since the Miami Grand Prix last year, and both times it was against Sainz, in Melbourne and Singapore in 2023—a run of unparalleled supremacy.
Red Bull’s Improvement
Suzuka plays to the Red Bull’s advantages; it is expertly balanced through the quick turns, and the car’s careful tire management lessens the impact of the extremely abrasive surface. Verstappen is still undoubtedly unique, though. He could very likely access additional funds from the bank if needed. Like in 2022 and last year, he can ease off from caning the car to the flag once he has established a sizable lead.
Red Bull’s improvements to the meeting seem to have paid off, showing that they won’t be standing still or providing any simple ways to catch up. This was an indication that, with their hold on the championship well entrenched, they plan to hold onto it, at least for the next few races, before maybe allocating more resources to the vehicle of the following year. In a race when Verstappen leads Pérez by 13 points in the drivers’ championship, that is a depressing thought for the neutral.
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