After a failure on the first attempt and an engine problem on the second prevented Max Verstappen from setting a fastest lap in qualifying, the Dutchman was in for a tough race as he came from behind in Budapest .
But the 2022 generation of cars proved that they can put on a show even at the twisty Hungaroring circuit, and after a strong start, Verstappen continued to move up the positions to move ahead of all four Ferrari and Mercedes cars.
Just after overtaking Charles Leclerc to take the lead on lap 42, Verstappen spun out of turn 13, but with a clean 360-degree turn he managed to continue without too much loss of time, also thanks in part to hard work. as a squire to his partner Sergio Pérez.
The mistake cost him the lead from Leclerc, only for Leclerc to overtake the Monegasque driver shortly afterwards on his way to a shock victory.
Verstappen explained that he had to take care of the clutch to prevent it from burning,
“I was struggling a bit with the gears and the clutch,” said Verstappen.
“We had to change a few things to basically not burn the clutch, and that cost us a little bit of performance.
“I think that caught me [coming] out of that corner, but luckily I was able to do a 360, so I lost a place.”
Verstappen, who said he hoped to approach the podium from 10th on the grid, praised his Red Bull team for getting all their strategy decisions right as an intermittent light drizzle made reading the race difficult.
“Of course, I was hoping to get closer to the podium, but the conditions were very difficult,” he added.
“But I think we have made a good strategy. We were very reactive and always pitted at the right time. I think we had good laps out.”
“It’s been a crazy race. And of course I’m really glad I won it. I’ve been fighting a lot of guys so it was a lot of fun.”
Verstappen ‘s lead in the world championship has been extended to 80 points over Leclerc ahead of the summer break, as his main rival for the title could only finish sixth despite starting third.
