Max Verstappen: Charles Leclerc will win in 2019

Max Verstappen

Verstappen: Leclerc will win in 2019

They had a great battle in Austria.

Matthew Scott

Monday 1 July 2019 10:09

Max Verstappen has backed Charles Leclerc to secure a maiden grand prix victory in 2019 after denying him in the closing stages of a thrilling Austrian Grand Prix.

Verstappen won Red Bull's home race for the second year in succession after executing one of the great recovery drives for victory in F1.

Leclerc and Verstappen started together on the front row, but the Dutchman dropped several places after a poor launch, while the Ferrari driver made a brilliant getaway.

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However, Verstappen was awesome from there, overtaking five cars, the last of them Leclerc with three laps remaining to secure his sixth race win in F1 and leaving the Monegasque to count the cost of a second failure to convert pole into victory, having been denied in Bahrain by an engine problem.

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Verstappen's race-winning overtake was referred to the stewards, but no penalty was deemed necessary after over three hours of deliberating, with Ferrari insistent that sanction was suitable. The pair would share a flight home soon afterwards, but Verstappen played down any tension between F1's brightest young stars.

"We're good, we're good. Already after the stewards we were good," Verstappen told Channel 4 after the decision was confirmed.

"We are racing drivers. I've known Charles for a long time and he will for sure this year take his first victory as well.

"You have to accept it. Of course, it's disappointing to lose your first victory in the last few laps.

"I've lost out on pole positions which were very painful. Last year, for example, my Monaco weekend was horrible.

"Those things happen in this sport and, like I said, Charles is a great driver and he will come very far.

"I think we have another 15-20 years racing together!"

Assessing the main talking point with the serenity that celebrating had brought, he added: "Diving up the inside, late braking of course.

"He normally should have cut back, when you try to go round the outside, but we all know there is run off and that makes him do that [run off-track]. If there was gravel like Turn 4, you don't do that anyway, you try to cut across.

"Like I said, it's hard racing and it should be like that. I like hard racing!

"In F3 it was all the time, you bump a bit of wheels and if you're the guy on the outside you're just disappointed that he got you."