Janice R. Andrews
Max Verstappen said something surprising about his hopes of winning the F1 world title in 2024. The Dutch driver, who has been the best in Formula 1 for the past few years, said that the title is “not in his hands” after going six races without winning.
It’s been hard for Verstappen and Red Bull to keep up their early-season form since his last win in Barcelona in June. Most recently, at Monza, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc won, while Verstappen could only finish sixth, which makes people worry about Red Bull’s recent drop in performance.
Revamped parts for Verstappen’s Red Bull RB20 have not improved its speed as planned in the middle of the season. So, Lando Norris of McLaren has been closing the gap. With eight races left in the season, he is now only 62 points behind Verstappen. Even though Verstappen was ahead in points, he knew that the title could be lost if Red Bull kept having problems.
Verstappen told reporters after the race, “I just do the best I can.” It won’t change my life whether I win or lose the title. Would I like to win it? Of course. But it’s not up to me to decide how well the car runs.
Verstappen said, “I know everyone is working hard to make the car better.” This showed how determined the team was to do better. We’re aware of the imbalance issues; now it’s our turn to fix them and move ahead. He also said that they wouldn’t be able to repeat their success from last season, but he didn’t think they would have such a hard time this year either.
With McLaren becoming a real rival and Ferrari showing signs of being competitive, Verstappen is under more and more pressure to win his fourth straight world title. In Baku, at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the next test will take place. Verstappen and Red Bull will be eager to make things right there.
As the F1 season heats up, the question still stands: can Red Bull get back to winning ways, or will Verstappen’s chances of winning the title fade in the last few races? This coming weekend, everything will be on Baku for what could be the most important time in the title fight.
