Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz passed away shortly before the start of qualifying for the 2022 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix following a long battle with illness, prompting the entire paddock to pay tribute to him. With the tragic news still fresh in his mind, Max Verstappen said after finishing third on Saturday that he wanted to make him proud wherever he was taking the team’s fifth world title at the Grand Circus.
Already on Sunday, the Dutchman managed to take the lead at the start after overtaking Carlos Sainz, and only a slow stop by his mechanics jeopardized the victory in Austin. The Dutchman started behind Lewis Hamilton but managed to close the gap until he overtook him just a few laps from the checkered flag, giving him his 13th win of the year, thus tying the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.
“It’s been difficult,” he said. “Everything was looking good, but the pit stop was a bit longer than we would have liked, so I had to fight to come back, we gave it our all out there today.”
“Of course it’s a very difficult weekend for us, so this is dedicated to Dietrich [Mateschitz], for what he has done for us,” he continued. “The only thing we could do was win, and although after the pit stop I didn’t see it very well, I gave it my all to the limit.”
Verstappen added that the win meant a lot to him because of the role Mateschitz had in his Formula 1 career, acknowledging that he was a vital person.
“I wanted to have a good result and it was incredible,” said the Dutchman, who was able to celebrate his team’s world title with three races remaining, as Red Bull far exceeded the 19-point margin it needed over Ferrari.
“We had a great chance to win here. Of course you want to do it in style, and I think we did,” said the two-time champion, who complained loudly over the radio after a slow stop that lost him nine seconds.
The Dutchman overtook Leclerc and Hamilton, in very similar movements: “This is a great circuit to fight, if you pass in one corner, you can come back in the next one, it’s very good to drive here”.
Do you want to read our news before anyone else and for free? Follow us here on our Telegram channel and you won’t miss a thing. All the information, at your fingertips!
