Johny Hebert, who criticized
Max Verstappen after the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix, could not find enough praise for the Dutchman after the race in Sao Paulo.
Red Bull Racing F1 driver Max Verstappen increased his lead in the Drivers' Championship to
62 points ahead of
Lando Norris in second place following the 2024
Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
This result has come as a complete surprise because the triple World Champion started the Grand Prix from P17 and his Championship rival from pole position.
A Majority of F1 fans expected a big points swing, but the other way around. However, Verstappen showed one of the best performances in his career, ultimately finishing more than 19 seconds ahead of everyone.
Former F1 driver, three-time Grand Prix winner, and one of F1's stewards, Johny Herbert, praised the 27-year-old after the weekend in Brazil as he told SafestBettingSites:
"Title race has to be over! When you do a drive like Max Verstappen did, you deserve to be in the position. He has earned the world championship."
"That was a stunning drive. The conditions were tricky on a demanding track, and he dealt with it supremely."
"The first lap proved his racing mind, and ability is so much better than anyone else at the time. He has an uncanny belief in himself and places the car in the position that he needs to."
Herbert was
one of the stewards who gave Verstappen the 20-second penalty in Mexico City, and he was also one of his biggest critics following that Grand Prix.
The former F1 driver believed the triple World Champion intentionally took Norris off the track during the race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez with him to help
Ferrari drivers come through, and that lost the 24-year-old some
valuable points in the Championship.
Herbert now returned to the incident in Mexico City, suggesting it was completely unnecessary as Verstappen clearly has the Championship under control.
"The question for me again is why did he do what he did in Mexico when he showed in Brazil he didn't need to."
"It was brilliant to see what he did. It is showing that maturity is coming, and his sheer speed is unbelievable."
"The belief he has in himself is one the true greats have like Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna who said there were times when you had an out-of-body experience and everything was perfect."
"From what I saw on Sunday, that was one of those days for Max where he showed sheer brilliance."