Max Verstappen (2nd/Red Bull Racing) hadn’t believed he’d make the podium in Hungary

For Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing), things went from strength to strength in Hungary – two steps at a time! First, on Saturday evening after qualifying, he moved up two places on the starting grid (Hamilton and Antonelli had been penalised). He moved up from 6th to 4th. And in the Grand Prix, he impressed with a strong performance, some brilliant overtaking manoeuvres and a bold strategy that paid off. He fought his way up from 4th to 2nd!

After the race, amid loud chants from his fans – who were celebrating him more than the winner, Lando Norris – Verstappen said: “I didn’t think I’d be on the podium. We worked hard for this. The start was decent. Then, getting back in front of Lewis (Hamilton, ed.) after the first stop was important. After that, I just tried to make the tyres last and make the right decisions with the strategy.”

Verstappen’s strategic masterstroke

Like most of his rivals, Verstappen had started on mediums. After 15 laps, he switched to hards, following the general trend. On lap 42, however, Verstappen began to go against the grain! Most of his rivals at the front switched from hard to hard (having already used a different tyre compound during the first stint). But Verstappen went for soft tyres! And he pushed them right to the finish.

During the Virtual Safety Car period, triggered by Oscar Piastri’s gearbox failure, the Ferrari drivers, amongst others, pitted for a tyre change. Not so Verstappen. He carried on on the softs. His race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, had told him that the tyres should hold out, adding: “You’ll have a lot of fun at the end of the race.” And how!

On his way to second place, Verstappen had repeatedly complained about his car, just as he had on Saturday. After the race, he said: “I’m very happy to be second here, all things considered.”

“Everything under control”

Just like in the old days, Verstappen was locked in a close battle with Lewis Hamilton; on lap 16, shortly after their pit stops, he made a strong move past the seven-time world champion after both had overtaken Lawson. A brilliant manoeuvre! Verstappen commented: “I saw that as my only chance and just went for it. We’re strong on the brakes. It was all under control.”