You can’t make errors if you’re going for glory, says champion

MAX VERSTAPPEN can now afford to finish second at each of the remaining rounds and still win the title following another Ferrari blunder at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Verstappen takes an 80-point advantage into the sport’s onemonth shutdown — the equivalent of more than three victories with just nine to play — after he claimed the eighth win of his title defence at the Hungaroring following a superb drive from tenth on the grid.

After Charles Leclerc overcame George Russell’s 30-lap resistance to assume the lead at Turn 1, he looked destined to win.

But the Monegasque’s afternoon was wrecked — and his championship hopes dealt an almost irreversible blow — when Ferrari elected to put their star driver on the hardest rubber. It was a strategy dismissed by tyre supplier Pirelli, and one Verstappen said his Red Bull team did not even consider.

From being the fastest man at the Hungaroring, Leclerc suddenly had no speed, and he was gobbled up by Verstappen at the start of lap 40.

Verstappen spun at the penultimate corner on the same lap to allow Leclerc back in front. But such was Leclerc’s dramatic loss of pace, the Dutchman raced past his beleaguered rival with ease at the second corner five laps later. An extra pit stop saw him cross the line a desperate sixth.

‘You cannot afford any mistakes if you want to fight for the championship,’ said Verstappen.

‘Ferrari chose the wrong tyres in their final stint. Before then, they were strong. We put the right tyres on the car today and that was the most important thing to get right.

‘I was, of course, hoping I would get close to the podium, but it was very tricky conditions out there but we had a really good strategy, we were really reactive, always pitting at the right time. I think we had some good outlaps but even with the 360 (spin) we still won the race.

‘I was struggling with the shifts and the clutch and we had to change a few things around that to basically not burn the clutch and that costed a bit of performance and so that caught me out a bit on that corner.

‘I was battling a lot of guys and it was a lot of fun out there. It was a crazy race but, of course, very happy we won it.’

Lewis Hamilton started seventh and finished second — following his late charge through the field — with pole-sitter George Russell third.

For large periods of yesterday’s 70-lap affair, Hamilton was out of contention. But after adopting a different strategy to those around him, the race came towards the British driver in the closing stages.

‘If we are able to take this pace into the second half of the season, we can start to fight with the guys ahead,’ said the seven-time world champion.

‘This is the first time we have been able to battle with Ferrari and that is huge for us.

‘The Red Bulls are still ahead — the fact Max started tenth, spun, and finished eight seconds ahead of me says enough about their car.

‘But we have made huge progress, and huge steps so to have this consistency, and two double podiums in the last two races gives us a huge boost ahead of the second half of the season.’

Russell added: ‘When it started spitting at the beginning and we were on the soft tyres I thought we were on, and we had a strong start it was a good first stint, and then towards the end on the mediums I really struggled.

‘Again, an amazing job by the team in pole position yesterday, double podium, we are definitely making progress, so really proud.

‘I’m sure there’s a lot I will look over and I could have done better. Managing the tyres obviously we pitted quite early on both stints so you’re trying to eat the tyre out to the end, trying to push as hard as possible at the same time. A bit of a challenging position but pleased to come away with a podium. I think it’s been an incredibly intense start to the season and I think a break will do everyone some good.’