A visibly relieved Max Verstappen looks back satisfied on Saturday in Miami. The Dutchman was able to qualify on the front row for the first time this season with his RB22, a stark contrast to the bitter disappointment he felt just five weeks earlier in Suzuka. According to Verstappen, there is also a night and day difference between the car then and the car with which he was now faster than the Ferraris and McLarens. ‘I can finally drive the way I want to drive,’ the world champion concludes happily.
Read more Kimi Antonelli did not see fast Verstappen coming: ‘Surprise to see him next to me’
Max Verstappen has qualified in the top three for the first time this season and will therefore start the Miami GP from the front row. The Dutch world champion is also in good spirits when asked about the session during the press conference after qualifying. “To be back on the front row, after we were previously a second slower than the rest, that is really great,” he says.
For Verstappen, the whole Saturday at the Miami International Autodrome went well, after he finished fifth in the sprint race. The driver especially enjoyed the fact that he could keep up with the top teams – including Lewis Hamilton in the Ferrari. “I could finally follow the cars in front of me, instead of seeing them drive away and then disappear on the horizon.”
Read more NEWS: GP Miami moved forward to 7:00 PM Dutch time due to severe weather
‘Finally driving the way I want to drive’
According to the Red Bull driver, there is a world of difference between the RB22 before the spring break and the car with which he drove the qualifying session in Miami. “To be honest, everything about it is better,” he explains. “Earlier this season, nothing worked. I really felt like a passenger in the car. The car could understeer, suddenly snap out, or feel very different from one session to the next without anything being changed on the car. We are not yet where we want to be in terms of understanding everything – but we already understand most of it. And that shows. The car feels much more like a whole. I can finally drive the way I want to drive.”
Read more Verstappen cheers after second qualifying time: ‘Light at the end of the tunnel is in sight’
Read everything about the GP Miami here
