Max Verstappen has almost been flawless this season, winning seven of the opening nine races and finishing second in the other two. However, even though he is in such fine form, he, too, made a mistake during the British GP qualifying session. The Dutchman bumped the wall while casually exiting the pits, causing his Red Bull team a whopping $219,000 to replace the front wing.
Although Verstappen made this mistake, this was perhaps the only time he did so, even this weekend at Silverstone. This is because he was the fastest in two of the three practice sessions.
And with the 25-year-old showing such a high pace in the early part of the weekend, he could win the British GP for the first time in his career. It is pertinent to note that the Red Bull driver has won at Silverstone, but it was during a one-off event in 2020 called the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.
However, the British GP could be the first race this season when Red Bull’s competitors can mount a real challenge, as most have brought upgrades. The likes of McLaren and Williams have shown some robust pace this weekend. Although with Verstappen damaging Red Bull’s front wing, it remains to be seen if it will return to haunt him.
Verstappen damages his Red Bull’s front wing during the red flag
The first part of qualifying in the British GP abruptly stopped after Kevin Magnussen’s Haas lost power. Since the Danish driver failed to park his car in a safe place, race control had no option but to red-flag the session.
When the session restarted, Max Verstappen strangely hit the wall in the pit lane while he was exiting his garage. Speaking of what happened, the Dutchman said on his Red Bull radio (as quoted by Sky Sports F1), “I just understeered and had no grip.”
Oops! Max Verstappen has hit the wall in the pits on his way out to the track 🫣
A new front wing is on the way!#BritishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/qWzX2Ee969
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 8, 2023
With Verstappen damaging his Red Bull’s front wing, the team immediately brought him back into the garage to change it. This incident cost the Milton Keynes outfit a staggering $219,000, according to redbull.com.
Since the 25-year-old had a broken front wing on his Red Bull, he could only set the fifth-fastest time in Q1. However, fortunately for him, his time was good enough to move to the next part of qualifying, even though the rest of the drivers improved significantly towards the end of Q1. The same was evident as Lando Norris surprisingly set the fastest time with Charles Leclerc in second.
Can anyone challenge Max Verstappen at the British GP?
Despite all the talks of rivals getting closer to Red Bull with their upgrades, nothing seems to affect Max Verstappen. He ended the session on the pole despite colliding with the wall in the pit lane during the first part of qualifying.
The Dutchman qualified on pole ahead of the two McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Both McLarens were flying throughout each part of the British GP qualifying session as they registered some awe-inspiring lap times.
QUALIFYING CLASSIFICATION 👀
Your final order from qualifying at Silverstone! #BritishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/syQTcF5V0O
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 8, 2023
Moreover, even though Norris had the pole position momentarily, it was not enough to beat the flying Dutchman. Verstappen grabbed it back on his last flying lap and showcased again that he is still the man to beat this weekend.
Hence, despite all the drama during the British GP qualifying, the question remains: Can anyone beat Verstappen?
