Verstappen will hope to avoid any repeat of his 2021 nightmare this weekend when he and Lando Norris go head-to-head in the next round of their Formula One title battle at the British Grand Prix.
Days after a contentious incident at the Austrian Grand Prix destroyed the races of both drivers and handed the victory to Mercedes’ George Russell, the three-time Red Bull champion and McLaren’s challenger to the title meet again.
In front of a biased home audience, the possibility of greater wheel-to-wheel racing and possible contact at the fast Silverstone circuit unavoidably brings up memories of a similar situation in 2021.
Then, following an early lap collision with British hero and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes at the terrifyingly fast Copse corner, an unforgiving and merciless Verstappen found himself in the hospital.
Although the circumstances have changed, the situation is unsettlingly similar: two determined racers who won’t give up, even if Verstappen was found to be responsible for starting their intense altercation last Sunday.
Since then, he has acknowledged that he and Red Bull made “mistakes2,” but he has not issued a formal apology for his irresponsible racing, which caused McLaren team chief Andrea Stella to doubt the honesty of Red Bull’s Christian Horner.
Stella also expressed his opinions on the FIA’s role in permitting Verstappen to avoid penalty for his involvement in multiple concerning incidents with Hamilton three years prior. These remarks have enhanced the competition this weekend, making it a “high stakes” matchup with more than points at stake.
“Austria ended up not being the result we were hoping for and there were a lot of things to take away from the race that myself and the team can analyse and work to improve on,” Verstappen stated.
“We were severely harmed by a few errors made during the race. As the final race of a tripleheader, we aim to return to Silverstone victorious.”
“We wish to engage in combat.”
It’s a “home” race for the majority of the teams, so Stella is hoping Verstappen will obey the rules and not defend as fiercely this time to deliver an incredible racing spectacle.
Following his analysis of the race on Sunday, Norris declared that he would not alter his strategy or style of play. “That’s what we want, and I was fighting.” We desire a fight.
“We wish to voice no complaints. Things shouldn’t end the way they did. We’ll go above and beyond because we both want to win.”
In addition to Norris, Russell and Hamilton will also be looking to win at home in the 12th race of 24 in what seems to be a fierce battle between the top four teams as the season approaches its halfway point.
Verstappen won the British Grand Prix last year, and Hamilton hopes to break a 56-race drought by winning the race in the 75th edition of the British Grand Prix. Hamilton has won the race a record eight times at Silverstone.
Aston Martin’s fellow Spaniard Fernando Alonso has won twice in Britain, although he might not have the car to win this season. Carlos Sainz of Ferrari, who Hamilton will replace the next year, triumphed at Silverstone in 2022.
“We know Silverstone is the king of the high speed, so we need to take a step,” Sainz stated. “And we’re going to do everything in our power to become more competitive.”
If Sergio Perez can finally find his form again, Sainz and teammate Leclerc, Mercedes, Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri, and the two Red Bulls should all be in the middle of the action.
But while Red Bull looks to move past a string of setbacks both on and off the track, most eyes will be on Verstappen, who comes into the race with an 81-point championship lead.
Not only is the Dutchman’s friendship with Norris strained, but his reputation and advantage in the title race could be in jeopardy.
