Max Verstappen São Paulo Grand Prix recovery from 21st on grid, Digi Mart USA News (São Paulo, Brazil): James Hinchcliffe has delivered an “outrageous” verdict on Max Verstappen’s charge through the field at the São Paulo Grand Prix, calling the Red Bull driver a “savage competitor” after he carved his way from the back of the grid to finish second behind race winner Lando Norris.
Verstappen started from 21st on the grid after taking an engine-related penalty for exceeding his season’s power unit component allocation. He crossed the line just 14.602 seconds behind Norris, who converted pole position into victory despite a wheelspin issue off the line.
Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Hinchcliffe pointed out that Verstappen’s run to the podium from the back has become a habit at Interlagos. “You have one little issue, a mechanical issue on Lando’s car, and he’s won the race from 21st on the grid,” Hinchcliffe said.
“I mean, it’s outrageous.”
Hinchcliffe noted that the challenge with Verstappen is not knowing how he would perform starting at the front, since he has not done so at the track in years. “That’s three years in a row now that he’s had to do starts from the teens, pit lane or the 20s, and all three times he’s ended up on the podium,” he said.
“So it’s remarkable what he’s accomplished at this track over the last few years.”
Verstappen suggested after the race that he could have closed in further on Norris had his grid penalty not pushed him to the back. Hinchcliffe described that remark as a calculated piece of gamesmanship.
“And that’s exactly what you should say to get into the head of your competition, right? Lando won this race by 10 seconds last year, and on the cool-down lap, he said it wasn’t a big enough margin.”
“Well, he did it by 14 this year, but Max is going to be the first to be like, ‘Well, yeah, it was 14, but was it?’ But that’s also what makes him such a fierce competitor,” Hinchcliffe said. He added that Verstappen could still be analyzing what went wrong, with the car possibly being taken apart at the factory or at the next race to look for any issue.
“These cars are very complicated and complex, but that’s why, again, he’s such a savage competitor that, even after a drive like that, he’s still trying to figure out how he could be better,” Hinchcliffe said.
