“It’s actually a miracle”– Mika Hakkinen believes Max Verstappen completing the race in Hungary after the crash was a Sisyphus task.
Max Verstappen is one of the two contenders to run for the drivers’ championship this year, but his lead against the other contender– Lewis Hamilton, drowned after the damage he obtained in the infamous ‘Turn 1’ crash in Hungary.
Verstappen couldn’t recover from the hit and struggled to emerge from the midtable crisis while Hamilton easily cruised past all the drivers on the grid to win a podium by the end of the race.
However, former world champion Mika Hakkinen believes that what Verstappen did in Hungary was not an easy task and called it a ‘miracle’.
“I really expected Red Bull to dominate this weekend considering the strengths of their car and its suitability for tight circuits.” Hakkinen began in his usual column on Unibet.
“However, Mercedes has reacted brilliantly in recent weeks, bringing upgrades and really fighting back. The accident in the first corner had a big impact on the race and the world championship,” he said.
“It was the damage caused to Red Bull’s cars that really changed the race and the championship. With Sergio Perez out of the race and Max’s car suffering a lot of damage it’s actually a miracle that he finished the race and scored a point. This was a very difficult day for the team.”
Red Bull is worried about the grid penalty.
The Red Bull duo, after their recent crashes, is now forced to take up the third engine of the year, which now brings them only a step away from the grid penalty, as they would need a fourth engine soon later in the season with 12 races more to go.
Two tough results to end part one of 2021 🏁 The Bulls will return 🔜 pic.twitter.com/U9AAqZki7H
— Red Bull Racing Honda (@redbullracing) August 2, 2021
It remains to be seen how Red Bull recovers from the latest series of setbacks.