Max Verstappen Reveals That His Pit Exit Was The Most Fun He Had During The F1 Monaco GP!

Red Bull drivers had another productive outing during the weekend in Monaco. They managed to secure a double-podium at the narrow street circuit. Sergio Perez managed to win his first race in Monaco, while Max Verstappen stayed in touching distance and finished third. Red Bull is the frontrunner in the 2022 championship. Not just that, Verstappen is the prime contender for lifting his second F1 championship in a row.

Talking during the post-race press conference in Monaco, the reigning world champ revealed the most exciting moment of the race. Max stated that he needed to be on the limit during the pit exit, or the following driver would have passed him due to the lack of traction (grip). Thus, Verstappen felt that his attempt to stay ahead during the pit exit was probably the most fun he had in the race.

Max Verstappen also mentioned the collision during the late stages of Saturday\’s qualifying. Perez lost control of his car and hit the barriers just before the tunnel. Soon after, Carlos also slipped and hit Perez\’s car during the final thirty seconds of the qualifying. As a result, the qualifying was called off immediately, and Leclerc managed to secure the pole position. 

Max shared that after failing to finish the final lap on Sunday, he knew that his race was compromised a bit due to a P4 start. However, the Dutchman tried to maximize the result as a team. And he was happy to pull it off with a double podium for Red Bull. However, Ferrari lodged a complaint and requested the FIA to investigate the pit exits of both Red Bull drivers. But, the race stewards reject Ferrari\’s protest.

Verstappen Believes He Had The Pace To Compete With Carlos Sainz & Sergio Perez

Talking about his RB-18\’s pace, Verstappen mentioned that his car had the strength to compete with the Ferraris. Max felt that he could have easily passed Sainz and Perez if the race had not been in the Moncao\’s narrow street circuit, which limits overtaking by a fair margin. The Dutchman said that Red Bull had a good pace as he had all the laps in clean air, and they felt right. Max Verstappen further suggested that changing the tyres to mediums at the end was a risky move compared to staying on hard tyres. Because generally, they don\’t know how many laps were left.

The Red Bull driver noted that the two cars in front of him began to grain a bit. Perez experienced quite a bit of graining in the front while Sainz struggled with the rear graining. But, Verstappen couldn\’t pass them with very little space. Max reckoned that his balance felt right, and he could have gotten really close. He added, \” If I wanted to, I could have bumped Carlos a few times in the hairpin. Maybe he would have liked it.\”

Max Verstappen currently leads the drivers\’ championship with a nine-point lead over Leclerc and fifteen points ahead of his teammate Checo. Hence, Verstappen will look to maximize the upcoming Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku to get far ahead in terms of points.