Verstappen moved 32 points ahead of Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton at the top of the drivers’ standings after scoring consecutive victories at the Red Bull Ring over the past two weekends.
Verstappen took pole position in both races, leading all 142 laps over the two events as well as the fastest lap at the Austrian Grand Prix to mark his first Grand Slam of his career.
Red Bull’s dominant performance led Hamilton to urge their Mercedes team to provide an update to their W12 car to turn the tide after failing to win the last five races.
While he was of course “enjoying” his current wave of success after three wins in a row, Verstappen said, Red Bull had to keep working to ensure that his car was able to repeat his Austrian shows on the other upcoming circuits.
“I’m also focusing on the rest of the season,” said Verstappen.
“It’s still so long and there are still a lot of points to score. We have to make sure we’re back up there every weekend and basically realizing the car’s full potential.
“We had a good car, especially in Austria, I think it was just very dominant. But we have to make sure that we’re back at Silverstone.
Race winner Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB16B
Photo by: Erik Junius
“We’re going to look at that again now to make sure we’re very competitive there.”
Silverstone will host the UK Grand Prix next weekend and Mercedes will be unveiling its final season update for the W12 car, debuting the Formula 1 sprint race weekend format.
The track is traditionally a stronghold for Mercedes, which has won seven of the last nine races held there. Verstappen is the most victorious on the track and won the 70th anniversary Grand Prix last year.
Red Bull F1 boss Christian Horner said it was “a shame that we don’t have any more races in Austria” and that Silverstone would be a completely different challenge for his team.
“Now we’re driving on a track that has really been a Mercedes stronghold for seven years,” said Horner.
“It’s a different challenge with the introduction of sprint racing, a different format this weekend. Obviously, Mercedes has been tremendously strong there over the years, and Lewis has his home support too.
“We expect it to be a big challenge.”
