F1 News: Max Verstappen Speaks Out On Matching Sebastian Vettel Record - "Something I Never Even Thought About"
Max Verstappen drove to take the victory at the Dutch Grand Prix making it his eleventh win of the 2023 season.
As well as it being the two-time champion's home race, the win was even more significant as he matched Sebastian Vettel's record of nine consecutive race wins. Reflecting on the race and matched record, Verstappen spoke about the tricky race conditions in the wet weather claiming it was "probably one of the more difficult races to win again."
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During his post race interview with the media, the Dutch driver commented:
"I think the first laps on the slicks were quite stressful. You don't want to immediately go off the track. And also, knowing how much grip there is still out there on the tyres with the amount of water coming down was not easy.
"And of course, the final restart with seven laps to go, or six laps to go, I knew that I had not been the best with warm-up, so I knew that I had to survive, let's say that first lap. Fernando was pushing very hard behind. I could see him closely in my mirrors. But once I had the temperature in my tyres, it was all well-balanced again.
"It was probably one of the more difficult races to win again. Nine in a row is something I never even thought about and I'm very happy with that."
Verstappen has now extended his lead in the drivers' championship to 138 points over his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez who is running in second. The Austrian team has dominated the 2023 season winning all thirteen races so far.