“You remain undefeated this season and your driver breaks the record for victories in a row. You are living a dream…
This result is amazing. With his pole, Ferrari had an advantage over us especially with his car which is so fast in a straight line. The key was knowing how to manage our tyres. And the team did a great job of setting the car up so that our tires didn’t suffer too much. And what intelligence from Max to push Carlos to his limits to force him to wear his tires hard and fast. That was key because the Ferrari was very quick on the straights.
Did you find Max Verstappen more nervous than usual?
I wouldn’t say that but I would say even more focused than usual. We have seen that this record means something to him.
“The team is very strong but with Max it makes things easier”
Are you going to try to make the perfect season?
Look, we’re on fourteen wins out of fourteen races, that’s good. Leaving Europe unbeaten is huge. We will do everything to keep this momentum but I can’t promise you anything. McLaren didn’t get there in 1988 and back then there were fewer races.
Who or what can beat you?
(He sighs) We never gave up. That’s what I’m most proud of even when the elements were against us we were able to bounce back. The team is very strong but with Max it makes things easier. Max, he breaks records, he drives at a level… No one can beat him today. I don’t think we’ve ever seen such a level.
Can this level be maintained?
We will be beaten. It’s inevitable. We’re just going to try to delay the moment when it will happen as long as possible. Because it will happen. As we make the story, I think it’s easy to maintain focus. You can imagine that over the last 24 races, that is to say, one season, we have won 23 races (Brazil 2022 won by Mercedes). Just like what we did in 2013 with Seb (Vettel), it’s very strong. »
