'He Just Continues To Hit New Levels': Verstappen Receives Words Of Praise From Horner
F1Sunday, 10 December 2023 at 01:00
Christian Horner praised Max Verstappen during the FIA Gala price-giving ceremony, saying the Dutchman "just continues to hit new levels."
Consistency has been one of the key elements of Max Verstappen's success in 2023. Multiple F1 experts, like Timo Glock, praised the triple World Champion for not giving his opponents a chance by avoiding mistakes.
Red Bull Racing F1 team principal also recognized this aspect as he applauded the 26-year-old during the prize-giving ceremony. Horner said:
"He just continues to hit new levels. The only damage that he did this year was driving out the garage at Silverstone and clipping the front wing."
The only incident that can purely be attributed to Max Verstappen's fault is the incident in the pit lane during the British Grand Prix qualification.
The Dutchman slid into the wall opposite of Red Bull garage as he understeered on his way out. Nevertheless, he still went on to win both qualification and the following race.
Verstappen has cost his team only $345,000 in repairs in 2023, which is the lowest out of the whole Formula One grid and only underlines his consistency.
In comparison, his teammate Sergio Perez, who got involved in a lot more incidents and made more mistakes, cost his team $3,224,000.
Verstappen started races from various places, like ninth in Miami, sixth in Singapore, or fifteenth in Jeddah, but always managed to cross the finish line inside points. Horner continued:
"It's just phenomenal the heights that he's these hit, the consistency, some of the races, even with adversity coming from the back of the grid after issues in qualifying."
The Dutchman won his third consecutive Drivers' Championship title this year, and if Red Bull can keep its advantage over rival teams, it seems very likely he might equal Sebastian Vettel's record of four consecutive titles. Horner added:
"There been some stunning performances this year and he just continues to raise the bar. It's just great to see how he works with the team, with his engineering team, and Max is leading that from the front."
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