Red Bulls Max Verstappen compares himself to Marc Marquez

M ax Verstappen was on the first working day from Baku a sought-after man. More journalists than usual came to his media round in the Red Bull Pavilion. And everyone had the same question. How would the Rambo of Shanghai see the scene 14 days apart? Verstappen stayed true to himself: “I made a mistake, apologized to Seb, now ticked the subject and look ahead. The focus is on Baku. ”The Dutchman didn’t let himself be disturbed when someone wanted to know whether it had ever happened in his career that he had once apologized. “It happened, but not often.” After a moment's thought, he remembers: “The last time with my team-mate.” That was at the Hungarian GP last year when the two Red Bull drivers clashed on the first lap.

Car sat. The opponents in front of him shouldn't stop him on his way to his fourth GP victory. 'There was also a bit of impatience involved,' admitted Verstappen. “But I'm here to win and not to finish fifth.” When asked about the parallel to Marquez, Mad Max grinned: “He won the next race straight away.”

A Red Bull victory Baku will be a more complicated task than what Austin serial winner Marquez wanted to correct at the US GP. “Shanghai was a positive sign for us. We were strong on a track that is actually not that good for us. Even before the tire change. But I wouldn't go so far as to say that we have a winning car on every track. In Baku the straights are a bit too long for us. ”Red Bull will therefore hardly be on the front row in Azerbaijan either. But that doesn't have to be a broken leg: 'If the race gets as crazy as last year, if tire wear and strategy play a role, then we have a good chance of moving forward.'