Jos Verstappen closed an eventful first day of competition in the Rally of Wallonia in third place on Saturday. The rally, counting for the Belgian Rally Championship (BRC), started promisingly for Max Verstappen’s father, but a forty-second time penalty forced him into an early catch-up race. Despite the setback, Verstappen senior remains combative. “It’s incredibly exciting, but we’re not giving up,” he said.
The 43rd edition of the Rallye des Wallonie started strong for Jos Verstappen, who recorded the fastest time in the first special stage. However, that performance was quickly undone by a penalty for a speeding violation on the liaison, causing him to drop to seventeenth place. From that moment on, the rest of the day was dedicated to limiting damage and making up positions.
Read also: New navigator for Jos Verstappen in Rally of Wallonia
Jos Verstappen is forced to drive with a different navigator this weekend. His regular co-driver Renaud Jamoul had to cancel after an ankle fracture and was replaced by Jasper Vermeulen. Despite this last-minute change, the collaboration proved immediately effective. “It’s Jasper’s first time working with English notes, but it went well,” Verstappen explained after the first stage on Verstappen.com. “The car feels good and the first impression is positive.”
Read more How Christijan Albers quickly and efficiently intervened at Caterham
Jos Verstappen’s Catch-up Race
The catch-up race progressed steadily. After nine special stages, Verstappen had climbed to fourth place, after which he moved up to P3 due to a retirement by competitor Thomas Anacleto. At the end of the first day of competition, his gap to leader Adrian Fernémont is just over seven seconds to second place, with nine more stages scheduled for Sunday.
“It can still be better,” Verstappen concluded. “But Adrian is also in good form. We keep pushing, because the race is still long.”
Read more Riccardo Patrese sees pressure building on Russell: ‘He has to beat his teammate’
Watch the video of Formula 1 Paddock Talk with Jos Verstappen about rallying here:
Read everything about GP Miami here
