Twelve point lead for Verstappen is 'nothing': 'The pressure only gets bigger'

26 October 2021 at 08:54

Last update 26 October 2021 at 11:50

GPblog.com

Just like Robert Doornbos, Christian Horner is of the opinion that predicting the upcoming Formula 1 races is almost impossible. Horner is happy that Max Verstappen has won the world title, but doesn't dare to count his blessings yet.

Mercedes also strong in Mexico

Red Bull Racing went to America thinking Mercedes would be better and that seemed to be the case on Friday. However, after Friday Red Bull managed to get even more out of the car and Verstappen suddenly found himself on pole. The Dutchman lost the lead at the start of the race, but with an aggressive strategy, the Red Bull driver still won the race.

''You've got to chuck the formbook away. It's very tight between the top two teams and I hope that Mexico is a good track for us, but it has been a good track for them as well,'' Horner said opposite ESPN. The Brit is referring to Lewis Hamilton's three Mercedes victories in 2016 and 2019 and Nico Rosberg's in 2015.

Pressure on Red Bull

''There are five races to go and there are still another 130 points on the table, and we have only got a 12-point lead (in the drivers' standings). It's great to have extended it here because with ten laps to go it looked like we might be leaving here level or two behind on points, so to have extended the lead is a great result and we have got some big races coming up.''

However, Horner has already seen this year how quickly such a lead can disappear. ''But 12 points is nothing and it can disappear very quickly as we have seen previously. So we have to keep attacking the race weekends as we have been and get the most out of it we can. With five to go, the pressure only gets bigger,'' concludes the Red Bull team boss.