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Did frustration cost Verstappen in the Turkish Grand Prix?

Did frustration cost Verstappen in the Turkish Grand Prix?

16-11-2020 15:07 Last update: 15:32
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GPblog.com

During the free practice sessions Max Verstappen was ahead of the entire field in Turkey, but in qualifying, he was just short of pole position. Did this, together with his bad start, cause too much frustration for the Dutchman during the Turkish Grand Prix?

Irritated Verstappen

In the NOS Formula 1 podcast Max Verstappen's weekend was discussed by Jan Lammers and Louis Dekker. During the practice sessions, Lammers saw someone who was completely in his element. "Under those slippery conditions he drives purely by feeling and then he is dominant."

The irritation started with the Dutchman after qualifying, but especially after his bad start. "When you get irritated, you no longer drive on your feelings, but also on emotion. You don't want that. You then start the race with the wrong feeling, which you absolutely don't need under the difficult circumstances." The spin behind Perez made it even worse. "He got even more annoyed and then he doesn't bring out the best in you at all."

Not good enough from Verstappen

Dekker agrees with Lammers. He called the spin behind Perez a bizarre moment. "He patiently waited for Perez to make a mistake. The mistake Perez made wasn't big enough that he shot off, but Max probably thought: 'okay, now you're mine, now I'm going'. Then Max actually jumped into his own trap."

Dekker was critical of the performance of Verstappen in Turkey but couldn't put his finger on what it was. "It just wasn't good. I can't judge whether it was agitation or impatience. I think he could have won easily."