Max Verstappen was 'masterful' in Germany, says Ross Brawn

Max Verstappen

Verstappen was 'masterful' in Germany, says Brawn

Second win of the season for Max

Martin Macdonald

Tuesday 30 July 2019 13:05

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Formula 1 director Ross Brawn has lavished praise on Max Verstappen following the German Grand Prix in which the Dutchman impressively secured his second win of the 2019 season with Red Bull.

The race at Hockenheim had drama laced through it all afternoon, as drivers and teams struggled with tyres and strategy due to the changing conditions, with the track moving from wet to dry because of the indecisive rainfall.

No less than seven drivers retirement from the race, while a decent amount crashed into the barrier at the exact same last-turn spot.

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Verstappen wasn’t perfect, as he started off poorly to drop three positions immediately, while later in the race he was forced to recover from a 360-degree spin.

Thereafter, though, he made the race his own as drivers made more mistakes around him, and eventually claimed the flag.

Brawn reckons the Dutchman was near-perfect on the day.

The man who benefited from Mercedes’ errors was Max Verstappen, as he did in Austria,” he wrote in his post-race blog.

“The Dutchman and his Red Bull delivered an almost flawless performance in Hockenheim. The only two mistakes were a less than perfect start from the front row that briefly dropped him to fourth, and a harmless spin after switching to medium tyres shortly before half distance.

“However, as was the case in Austria, Max didn’t let either misstep impact on his performance, and again as with Austria, he simply got his head down and put his foot down on the way to a masterful seventh career win – and a point for the fastest lap of the race.

“The win puts him right up behind Valtteri Bottas in the drivers’ standings and it would be impressive if he can split the Mercedes pair, who, thus far have appeared untouchable.”

The victory for Verstappen also presented the second win of the season for Red Bull-Honda, and Brawn thinks the gamble of the two organisations coming together is beginning to pay dividends.

“The second win for the Red Bull-Honda combination is further reason for them to feel pride in their achievements,” he added.

“They both took a risk teaming up for this adventure, but it already seems to be paying off.”