Günther Steiner: “This man is behind Verstappen’s victories”

The Verstappen Express is back in full swing: pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, followed by his first win of the season. Pole position in the Singapore Sprint, followed by his 14th sprint victory. Pole position in qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix, followed by his first triumph in the popular night race – Verstappen’s 73rd Grand Prix victory overall.

Former Haas F1 team principal Günther Steiner has also been following the recent races with great interest. On the Red Flags podcast, the 61-year-old South Tyrolean talks about the Milton Keynes-based team’s current superb form.

Günther Steiner

Foto: XPB

Steiner says: “For me, team principal Laurent Mekies plays a fundamental role in this. He took over a team that had got a bit out of hand. Good old Laurent sorted it out, always friendly, always with a smile on his face, polite in every situation.”

“Mekies never lost his cool, not even when Max Verstappen was complaining bitterly. No, Laurent simply carried on working calmly. Some people left the team, and a few so-called experts said, ‘This team isn’t making any progress anymore’, and all that sort of thing. And guess what happened? Laurent Mekies brought the team back to winning ways.”

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“I think it’s remarkable what Laurent has achieved behind the scenes, and most people haven’t even noticed. Instead, many have simply criticised: ‘Oh, the team’s going under now that Christian Horner’s gone’. Not a chance! No, Mekies has taken on this job, completely without ego, but with a great deal of tact and sensitivity towards his staff. He’s simply doing a solid, good job. Red Bull Racing is back, and that’s largely down to Laurent Mekies; I have the utmost respect for him.”

Steiner on the greatest strength of the French RBR team principal: “I’d say there are two things. Firstly, his vast experience, because he’s worked in so many different places – Toro Rosso, Ferrari, the FIA. And secondly, his tremendous composure. He never overreacts; he always finds a way to tackle a problem objectively and simply shuts out all the distracting noise from the outside – which is an art in itself, because it’s incredibly annoying in Formula 1.”

“Over the years, Laurent has simply learnt to tell himself: ‘I’ll do my best, and I won’t let distractions get in the way. I’ll get on with my work calmly. If it works, great; and if it doesn’t, we’ll see what I can do better.’”