The reigning Formula 1 world champion served five grid penalty spots for an engine change, but that didn’t stop him from taking his fifth win in a row beating poleman Leclerc .
Verstappen had led the race after Charles Leclerc made a second pit stop to put on a set of soft tyres. The Red Bull driver, who was running a one-stop strategy on medium tyres, was attempting to maintain the gap to Leclerc when Daniel Ricciardo stopped his McLaren between the two Lesmo corners, where his car got stuck in a gear. .
The stewards were unable to remove the car quickly and it took a crane to lift it out of the loophole.
And although the leaders pitted for new tires in anticipation of a restart and final sprint, the race remained in safety car conditions until the end.
The result was met with boos from the Monza crowd, while Verstappen was also booed during his post-race interview in parc fermé with Martin Brundle .
While booing from the F1 crowd hasn’t been very common in 2022, it was frequent during the intense title fight between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton last year.
Verstappen brushed off the jeers directed at him, accepting that they were from the Ferrari tifosi who felt Leclerc had been denied a chance to fight for victory at the end by the safety car.
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Foto de: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Foto de: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Foto de: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
“Those are things that happen. Everybody talks to me about it, about the boos and stuff, but in the end I’m here to try to win the race, which we did,” said the Red Bull Racing man.
“Some people, of course, can’t appreciate that because they’re very passionate fans of a different team. That’s the way it is.”
“It’s not going to spoil my day, I’m just enjoying the moment.”
Leclerc added that he thinks F1 fans should stop booing any driver, while at Monza there were again flares in the stands.
Two flares were thrown at the Zandvoort track during qualifying for the Dutch GP the previous weekend, while concerns about track visibility have also been raised as a safety issue.
“I think nobody likes booing and I think it shouldn’t happen. That’s all,” Leclerc said.
“And as for the flares, I personally think it’s fine when used before the formation lap or the grid laps, but then sometimes during the race it can be a bit confusing for us. It is what it is, after the checkered flag there was some, but it wasn’t too annoying.
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