Max Verstappen has been dominating the grid this season. From pole position to race wins, the Red Bull star was everywhere. And with such domination, he is ruining the season, believes former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer.
With Red Bull and Verstappen having a mammoth lead on top, the competition for the driver’s championship or constructors’ championship doesn’t seem too interesting now. However, it is the fight for the rest of the positions that has everyone’s attention.
The fight for P2, P3, P4, and the following positions has been the real deal this season. With Mercedes, Ferrari, Aston Martin, and even Alpine in play, the competition this season is high.
If the Austrian team hadn’t dominated, the entire grid would have jockeyed for positions and the season would have been ultra-competitive with Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Carlos Sainz, and Charles Leclerc all in play.
Palmer laments a spoiled party by Red Bull
The former F1 driver has recently opened up on how the F1 could have seen multiple title contenders this season if Red Bull was not dominating.
Speaking on this, Palmer stated to BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, “Without Red Bull, this season would be one of the best ever. Can you imagine we don’t know who’s gonna turn up in, who’s gonna fight for that podium spot.”
MAX TAKES HIS 4TH CONSECUTIVE POLE OF THE SEASON. #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/KoE2QFSvxz
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) June 30, 2023
Furthermore, Palmer also focused on how Gianpiero Lambiase, the race engineer for Verstappen, asked the Dutchman to keep his pace steady. Lambiase’s call made the F1 analyst wonder how much the defending champion got in reserve.
Palmer also praised the Dutchman for keeping his composure throughout the season. No matter how the qualification was, Max Verstappen made sure he delivers, unlike his teammate Sergio Perez.
Is Red Bull and Verstappen pushing to their maximum?
Scott Mitchell Malm, another F1 journalist, pointed out the massive pace advantage the RB-19 has. Admittedly, the mighty RB-19 has never faced real challenges so far in terms of pace.
Qualifying dust has settled, here’s how the Bulls landed: Max is our pole-sitter for Sunday’s Grand Prix and Checo’s starting position will be P15 on Sunday. #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/YUu5XK5SNn
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) June 30, 2023
Amid everything going great for the Milton-Keynes-based team, the only place where they look weak is in Perez’s position. The Mexican driver hasn’t been able to extract the best despite being in the mighty RB-19.
While Verstappen has been making everything look very easy with the massive gap he made up in the championship, things aren’t the same with Perez. The 33-year-old has been struggling with his performance off late and now his P2 lead is at risk with Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton not far behind.
