![]() ![]() ![]() That meant that when they decided to swap the tyres on the rims for the final, it was always going to take a few laps for the grip to return. Then the hot Neapolitan sun had caused his rear tyres to overheat and blister as he made up those ten places to take pole position for the final. For starters, a burnt-out clutch in one of the early heats had left him tenth in the pre-final. But then there was the mistake.īut, you see, it wasn't all Max's fault. His father, Jos, a former F1 driver and now Max's full-time kart mechanic, always made sure his son had the best equipment when he moved up a class, and once again Max immediately looked very competitive against older, more experienced competition. The event was the KZ2 World Championship final at Sarno - a track near Naples, under the shadow of Mount Vesuvius - and Max was making the step up to shifter karts (go-karts with a gearbox) for the first time. The weekend had looked so promising, too. One of those weird moments in motorsport where a number of seemingly unrelated factors lead to a split-second decision that ultimately ruins a whole weekend's work. There was only one option left: call Mum.Īs he sat waiting for his mum, who was in a separate car a little further back on the same road, Max was still working the mistake over in his head. And he'd certainly never been left alone at a gas station in the south of Italy. In all of his 14 years and 11 months on this earth, he'd never seen his dad as angry as he was at the go-kart track a couple of hours earlier. The making of F1 world champion Max VerstappenĪs he watched his dad's van pull back on to the Autostrada without him, Max Verstappen was struggling to digest what had happened. Russell and Hamilton said after Friday practice that the third row of the grid was the best they could hope for in Qualifying, but as the pole position shootout played out - with Perez absent - it became clear the W14s were Verstappen's biggest challengers.You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser It has been all doom and gloom so far this season at Mercedes given Red Bull's dominance, with team principal Toto Wolff confirming the implementation of major changes to their design philosophy are under way. Mercedes come from nowhere to create Q3 drama While Verstappen was able to fight back from 15th on the grid to finish second in Saudi Arabia, Perez faces a huge task to give Red Bull a chance of extending their streak of one-twos to start the season. Minimising the damage will be really important." We have to work together as a team to overcome this problem. "I don't want to go too much into detail, I don't think it is worth it for us. However, the Mexican endured one of the worst days of his Formula 1 career, initially struggling badly in final practice on Saturday morning as he went off track several times after missing the beginning of the session while his mechanics worked on his car.Īfter suffering multiple issues in final practice, Sergio Perez then crashed out of Q1 to ensure he'll start last at the Australian Grand Prix. ![]() Having delivered a hugely impressive performance to beat Verstappen in Saudi Arabia two weeks ago, Perez's hopes of mounting a world championship challenge had been a hot topic coming into the weekend in Melbourne. Karun Chandhok takes a look at George Russell and Lewis Hamilton's qualifying laps as the Mercedes teammate qualify second and third in Melbourne.Ĭarlos Sainz split the Aston Martins in fifth, pulling off a rare Qualifying triumph over his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, who was seventh.Īlexander Albon produced a hugely impressive performance to take eighth, as a Williams driver reached Q3 for the first time this season, finishing ahead of Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg, who continued his strong start to the campaign.ġ0) Nico Hulkenberg, Haas What happened to Perez? ![]()
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