After stealing one other win from the McLaren workforce on the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, Max Verstappen responded to Zak Brown’s description of him as a ‘horror film’ villain, joking that the workforce can name him “Chucky” because the 2025 title combat heads to Abu Dhabi.
Talking within the press convention after his win in Qatar, the reigning champion was requested in regards to the feedback made by the McLaren Racing CEO, who had likened the driving force to a personality in a horror movie that “retains coming again”.
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“You’ll be able to name me Chucky,” he laughed. “I don’t know, I imply I noticed it as effectively, I assumed it was fairly humorous.
“From my aspect I simply deal with myself, you already know… I do know that after I go within the automobile, I simply attempt to do the most effective like I suppose everybody does. That’s the one factor that I can management, proper? And that’s the one factor that I deal with.”
Verstappen’s win got here after McLaren did not pit its drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri underneath a security automobile, triggered by contact between Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly. Whereas the remainder of the sphere pitted for recent tyres, each papaya-clad drivers stayed out, leaving them out of sync with the remainder of the grid.
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This left them susceptible, and ultimately Piastri fell from first to second whereas Norris slipped from third to fourth.
Max Verstappen, Pink Bull Racing
Max Verstappen, Pink Bull Racing
Brown’s earlier feedback, then, weren’t far off the mark, with him labelling the choice to not pit as a “large mistake” that price his workforce a win and certain a double podium, whereas Verstappen was in a position to capitalise on this poor technique.
The Dutchman now sits simply 12 factors off the championship chief as they head to Abu Dhabi, however regardless of this, he insists he is relaxed.
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“I am much more relaxed now. I do know that I am 12 factors down. I am going in there with simply optimistic power, I strive all the pieces I can however on the identical time if I do not win it, I nonetheless know that I had a tremendous season. So it would not actually matter,” he mentioned. “It takes plenty of the strain off. I am simply on the market having a very good time like I had right now.
“I additionally began right now with ‘oh, we’ll see the way it goes.’ I do know that after I sit within the automobile I’ll at all times maximise all the pieces I can and that is what I will attempt to do additionally in Abu Dhabi. However on the identical time, I additionally know that we have to depend on most likely some exterior elements to have a go at it.
“However a race like right now exhibits that we predict it may be boring and easy. It is not, so I am hoping that Abu Dhabi goes to be related.”
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