Max Verstappen was declared the winner of a Belgian Grand Prix that lasted less than three laps behind the safety car. With heavy rain preventing any competitive racing at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, the Dutchman was awarded the victory after qualifying in pole position with Williams Racing’s George Russell and Mercedes-AMG Petronas’s Lewis Hamilton in third.
“It is always good to win and the points are important but today is not how anyone wants to do it, especially on our 50th start with Honda. In hindsight it was very important to get pole yesterday and although it’s a big shame not to do some proper racing laps, as I really love coming to this track, it was just impossible in these conditions. I thought maybe at 15:30 the conditions were a bit better than just now when we tried to re-start but the visibility was still very low and I understand why we couldn’t race today. For me in the lead the visibility was a lot better, even with the Safety Car ahead, but the guys behind me couldn’t see a single thing and if someone went off at Eau Rouge and bounced back onto the track they could have been T-boned at high speed which we do not want. It was also extremely low grip and because it kept raining all afternoon it just didn’t improve. I think today the big credit goes to the fans around the track who stayed here the whole day in the rain, wind and cold. It must have been horrible to sit in those conditions so a big thanks goes to them and they should be the real winners from today. Now we have to keep on pushing and trying to re-gain the championship lead. I’m confident we have a good car and there is a long way to go so we just need to make sure we get the best performance out of it for the rest of the season.”
Verstappen picks up 12.5 points for the victory and is now just three points behind Lewis Hamilton in the championship standings. Red Bull Racing Honda teammate Sergio Perez had qualified in seventh but went into the barriers during the warm-up lap. Despite his car being repaired in time for the safety car laps, he was last on the grid and subsequently took 20th place.
While disappointed with yet another week without being able to race, there was a bright spot for Perez as he and Red Bull Racing Honda announced that he (Perez) had signed a contract extension which will keep the multiple race winner stay with the Team for the 2022 Formula One season.
With Max having already committed to Red Bull until the end of 2023, the Team fields a consistent driver line-up which is crucial as we embark on a new era of Formula One.
“I’m really happy to be continuing with a great team like Red Bull into the new era of Formula One and it’s a great opportunity for me. Everyone starts from zero next year with the new regulations, so my only goal is to go all the way to the top with Red Bull. It always takes time to get on top of everything when you join a new team but things have worked well this season and I really enjoy being a part of the Red Bull family. We’ve been working hard to deliver results so it’s great to see the Team have faith in me for the future. We have so much more to achieve together and we still have a great challenge on our hands this season so I really hope we can finish the year on a high and carry that momentum into 2022. I want to thank all my supporters around the world and especially those in Mexico. From my sponsors to my fans, they have been so enthusiastic since I joined Red Bull so I really hope we can reward them by reaching the top and winning the title.”
- ``These 50 races with Honda will always be special and well remembered when we look back.``
While the race itself lacked in driving, it still marked a milestone race for Red Bull Racing and Honda, completing their 50th race together.
“These 50 races with Honda will always be special and well remembered when we look back,” said Verstappen. “I think of course the first win with Honda will always be the most emotional memory during our time together and hopefully we can end this season on a high with them before they leave the sport. I have enjoyed working with Honda from the start. They have always been straight talking and delivered what we have expected. They spend a lot of time discussing everything with the Team and us as drivers which has been very important.”
Honda had been back in Formula One for four years before joining up with Red Bull and we had not even scored a podium finish, so we have come a long way to be now fighting for the championship together with Red Bull. This is down to a lot of hard work and excellent communication from everyone at Honda and Red Bull. On the eve of our 50th race, I want to thank Red Bull Racing for their open and fair approach and the trust they showed in us, sharing the same goal. In addition, we must not forget the contribution from the drivers in that time.
Another key factor was our excellent cooperation with Scuderia Toro Rosso back in 2018, which laid the groundwork for partnering both teams as from the following year and we are proud of what we have achieved so far. There are only around a dozen races still remaining for Honda’s F1 project and we will all be pushing as hard as possible to finish this adventure on a high.