There were two common themes from the Italian Grand Prix weekend. One was the distributed opinions about McLaren’s approach after the slow pit stop for Lando Norris, and the other was the surprise about how dominant Red Bull was in racing trim.
Max Verstappen has previously done strong qualifying performance this year, in which no one has so far takes more pool positions than the title defender. His count of five games championship leader Oscar Piastri, with Lando Norris One behind four.
But of his three wins, Monza was the most extensive. In Japan, Verstappen was under pressure from the McLarens for the entire race. At Imola, things were more comfortable, but larger holes opened thanks to the virtual safety car -timing and pit stop calls of the chasing cars.
No matter how unique the Italian Grand Prix location, the struggles from 12 months ago, and the subsequent difficulties at more locations this year, do not show that such a performance is likely, and team head Laurent Mekies lays a huge amount of outcome on the driver.
“I think the starting point is last year,” said Mekies. “There was really big problems in Monza last year. So it is always a difficult balance because you only do a lot of things for Monza. You only do wings for Monza, you only set up for Monza …
“Last year was a very difficult point and the boys were doing great, analyzed last year, here with a very specific solution and it seems that they have exceeded the target. This means that the car was actually in a much better window compared to the other tracks.
The domination of Verstappen was far from last year’s Italian Grand Prix. Mark Thompson/Getty images
“So if you add to that, Max just did perfection, a perfect weekend. Such a strong weekend it put us there. We had no pace in the race, but it turned out to be the case.
“We will probably think that many of them are probably Monza-specific. But we discover in Baku how many of the lessons we had this weekend and with the way we drove the car this weekend, can be transferred or not to other songs.”
The performance of Verstappen should not be underestimated, since the Ferrari team director Fred Vasseur also described it as “excellent”, but the components with which Mekies references must also be taken into account. There were monza-specific wings, but also a floor update that was designed to extract more load through improved pressure distribution while retaining the power stability.
Even if that turns out to be a component that has his most important advantages in Monza, it is very unlikely that so many resources are spent on such a large part for one location, and it could also give a step forward on other tracks. The new floor was only ready for Verstappen’s car in Italy, but is planned to be on both Red Bulls from Baku.
“We are convinced that it is a small step in the right direction. So they are not a few tenths to be clear. It’s a small amount, but everything is right.”
And where the floor could be more important is to offer Verstappen with the confidence he needs to push the boundaries of the car. During difficult weekends, so often on the radio, we have heard complaints about the balance, but when it is more to the taste of Verstappen-as in Monza-Dan he can also translate one-round performance into a strong race.
With new parts that successfully improve the car, the determination not to describe 2025 in the midst of recent struggles and to keep trying to find solutions something that Mekies wanted to praise in the same way after Sunday’s success.
A new floor helped Verstappen’s urge to win. Mark Thompson/Getty images
“At this kind of moment you think of the team, back in Milton Keynes, a tough start to the season. If things don’t work the way you want them to work, if you miss that
Ultimate pace, you request everything. That’s how we are, the competition is. You ask everything.
“And what is great in the team is that they have held an open mind. They have questioned everything in a very constructive way. And it is a lot of hard work, and you don’t always get the positive feedback from the tracks like what we got today.
“So the thoughts are very bad with everyone in Milton Keynes who have been so difficult to not give up. And again, it is a Monza -specific layout, bla bla bla, but it gives them a lot of time back from many weeks, many months of hard work in the dark.”
The title is too far out of reach, with Verstappen still 94 points drifting by Oscar Piaastri despite the victory of Sunday, and tracks that McLaren will fit, are much more on the horizon. But more consistently strong performance by Red Bull will enable the Dutchman to still be a factor in the title race by being closer to both Piastri and Lando Norris.
Since Verstappen was much eager in the same way in Azerbaijan as Monza a year ago – qualified more than 0.6s from the pace and never in the stage struggle – Baku will be an even larger indicator of how involved he could be.
#Perfection #Verstappen #Red #Bull #won #Racer