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1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull)
2 – Lando NORRIS (McLaren)
3 – Fernando ALONSO (Aston Martin)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by Mark Webber)
Q: Max Verstappen, another victory, the 17th victory of the year. It was
relatively straightforward, built off a beautiful Qualifying session, which
was tricky, got the pole with that on Friday. Run us through your afternoon,
mate.
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, I think the starts were very important today, both of
them, I think, were very good, and after that, the whole race was about the
management of the tyres. We were good on any tyre but I think especially
that middle stint, we could create a bit of a gap and I thought that was
very strong there.
Q: It must have been quite lonely at times though mate, it’s a long-old race
here, 71 laps, any mice in the machinery? Did your mind start to drift on
other topics, or did you manage to keep it all together?
MV: It all looked quite good, but with the high deg around here, you were
constantly correcting the car – so your focus always needed to be there. But
luckily, it worked out great today.
Q: So, a few weeks off now mate, Vegas, you must be looking forward to that
one. First time there, street race, racing at night…
MV: Very different to this one. I mean, a lot colder. Let’s see what the
track grip will do. Street circuit, new for everyone, and I think it will be
full of surprises for sure.
Q: Lando Norris, another podium mate, well done. Yourself and McLaren,
absolutely on fire. You executed that beautifully. The starts were tricky,
obviously, two different starts. Run us through your afternoon, mate, how do
you think it went?
Lando NORRIS: Very good, couldn’t have gone much better, to be honest. Good
pace, similar to yesterday, which is the main thing, and a much better start
at the beginning to get from sixth to second, which was a nice surprise. But
my start yesterday was not so good, so I tried to work on it, and it got
better. But then, the second start, I was just a little bit aggressive on
it. Still happy. P2 is as good as we can get nowadays and for the time being
– but very happy for the rest of it.
Q: Absolutely. Was there any part of the race where you felt there was still
a chance that Max might leave the door open for you?
LN: Not really! I mean, there’s little bits where the tyres come back to you
a little bit and you can push on – but Max always seemed to have an answer
to everything, which is a shame. But fair play to him, he drove a good race,
so yeah, tough, with the wind conditions and everything but P2 is a good
result.
Q: Cometh the man, cometh the hour, here he is. Mate, there’s no doubt about
you, you just never give up. That was an extraordinary last few laps. You’re
under so much pressure for so long from Sergio in obviously a far quicker
car behind you. DRS, he was trying to manipulate the move here and there, so
run us through those last two laps mate, that was absolutely special?
Fernando ALONSO: Yeah, for me it was like 30 laps that I had the pressure
from Checo, but yeah, when he passed me, two laps to the end, I thought OK,
going on the podium is not possible any more – but then he braked a little
bit late in to Turn 1 and I said, ‘OK, I go for it into 4’. And yeah, this
is a phenomenal result for the team. We’ve been struggling for a couple of
months already, especially the last two events with two retirements. So,
this podium is for them, for everyone in the factory, and yeah, we keep
fighting until the last lap.
Q: Some of the developments have been a bit tricky but this race, it looks
like, you’ve been strong in all conditions – and it’s a big result for the
team.
FA: Yeah, obviously we’re still learning about the car. These cars are so
complex aerodynamically, so, yeah, we’ve been experimenting a little bit to
find the direction for next year, without forgetting this year that we’re
still competing. So, happy for the result and now to Vegas!
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Max, very well done. You’ve extended your record tally of wins in a
season to 17. You drove beautifully. How much did you enjoy this one?
MV: Yeah, I think it was good. I mean, also, maybe it looks fully easy from
the outside, but I think for most of every stint, Lando was matching my
lap-times. It was always like the last five to ten laps when it seemed like
then, of course, we had better tyre deg. But yeah, the beginning of every
stint, I definitely had to focus a lot and I couldn’t afford to make
mistakes. And around here with the high deg as well, it’s not the easiest to
drive. It’s not like you can just relax and let the car just roll into the
corners without any consequence. You had to be really on it. And yeah,
luckily, everything we did today, also strategy-wise, pit stops, were good.
So, very happy about that.
Q: You talked about the beginning of each stint. Well, we saw that, just
after the restart, when Lando was very close to you for a lap. How hard were
you having to defend just then?
MV: He suddenly closed a lot. I didn't expect him to have a run into Turn 1,
but yeah, I had to use my battery a bit. And for one lap, into 1, into 4, I
had to defend. And then I had to, of course, try and maintain that gap. But
I think what also was very important at that stage of the stint was to
really look after the tyres. To make sure that you have a good lap to pit.
Q: You say you're having to look after the tyres. Was the situation better
today than it was in the Sprint yesterday, with the soft tyre in particular?
MV: Well, I mean, with the high fuel loads, normally, of course, it's a bit
harder, you have to be more careful, which I think we did, especially in the
beginning. But I guess also the track temperature being a bit lower helped.
So, I guess pretty similar at the end.
Q: And can we talk about the original start? No Charles Leclerc alongside
you? How does that change your outlook at that particular moment?
MV: I mean, you could still have wheel-spin and still lose positions but, of
course when the nearest car, like, it's not there, you can afford to maybe
have a little bit of a worse start. But, at the end of the day, once the
lights go on, you're focused on trying to do the best start you can do.
Q: Final one from me, Max. Next up, Las Vegas, it's a new track, a street
track. How much are you going to relish that challenge?
MV: Yeah, well, I'll deal with that once I arrive to the track. I mean,
there's still a lot to do. I still need to go on the simulator. I still
don't even know the track, to be honest. So, the last time I tried it on the
F1 game, I think I hit more walls than I was going straight. So, let’s hope
that’s not the case when I start driving there! But yeah, I mean, it's going
to be very different to here: very low temperatures, of course in the night
there. Street circuit. We have no experience there. We don't know the track
grip. All new. So maybe it will give you a few surprises. I don't know.
Q: Lando, let’s cut to the chase. Was that your best start in Formula 1?
Sixth to second in just a few metres.
LN: In terms of position changes? Yes. I don't think it's the quickest one
but it's all relative at the end of the day. So, it was a pleasant surprise
to come out in P2 already after Turn 1. I was expecting, and we planned a
lot for, like, you know, 20 laps in traffic and some overtakes and a bit of
fun. And I still had fun, but from P2 already. So, it was a good step up
from yesterday. Obviously, that's where I lost out to Max. Not because I had
a bad start, I still had one of the best starts on the grid. It's just Max's
– especially with that second phase – was extremely strong. So more just
comes and goes and today we did some more homework on it and tried to get
everything in a better window, and it all paid off. So yep, a good surprise
and a good step up from yesterday.
Q: Second start didn't look quite as sharp and it got pretty close with
Lewis Hamilton at Turn 1 as well.
LN: Yeah… but I held onto second, so it was fine.
Q: Now, we’ve just heard Max's analysis of Red Bull versus McLaren today. Do
you agree with it, in that your pace was similar at the start of each stint
but then he then pulled the gap?
LN: Yeah, I think similar to what we saw yesterday in the Sprint. I'm not
far behind for the first 10-15, 17 laps but that final phase, I just
drop-off a bit too much. I don't know if it's just we're a bit slower and
I’m pushing a bit more to try to keep up, and then I pay the price or it's
just a little bit of our tyre degradation is not quite as good and we suffer
in the slow speed quite a bit with the rears, and that's where we struggle
then with the lap time in the end. So, yeah, clear things to improve on,
like I said yesterday, but still a very positive day for us.
Q: And do you think an overtake was genuinely on, on that lap when you were
very close to Max after the restart?
LN: Was it on? I mean, I tried. I just wasn't… we struggled too much in Turn
10, Turn 12. It’s where the Red Bull’s extremely competitive and where we
struggle, have struggled all weekend. Apart from when we’re on new tyres,
and of course on that restart, I used my new tyres and Max didn't. So, I
thought if I was going to have one opportunity, it was going to be there and
then. So I used all of my battery, and of course, had DRS and then you do
start catching them very quickly. I had a good line in Turn 1, Turn 2, but
Max also had a lot of grip. So, you know, if it was maybe later on in the
stint, his line in Turn 1, Turn 2 would have been a lot more compromised and
a bigger penalty, but because the tyres were still fresh and provide a lot
of grip, he got a good enough exit that I then only got alongside him, just
before the braking zone for Turn 4. So, I mean, I tried, I would have tried
to get past him if I could, and I wanted to, but just a couple more metres
would have been lovely.
Q: Final one from me, Lando. Can we get your thoughts on Vegas and whether
you think McLaren are going to be competitive?
LN: No idea. I mean, I don’t think we were expecting to be as competitive
here as we have been. So we're still surprising ourselves. I gave up on
guessing where we're going to be nowadays. I mean, probably after Bahrain I
didn't want to think of where we're going to be. But yeah, it comes and
goes, you know. I think everyone expected Mercedes to be extremely strong
this weekend and they were nowhere. [Everyone] expected Ferrari to be a bit
more competitive and weren’t, so I think no one really knows. Everyone just
guesses and presumes but no one knows until we just get on track. So just
let's wait and see.
Q: Fernando coming to you now. What a memorable race for you, just 53
thousandths of a second ahead of Checo at the flag. It's your eighth podium
of the season. But surely, this is the sweetest of them all?
Fernando ALONSO: I'm not sure, the closest that’s for sure! Yeah, it was a
very intense race. And there was no time to relax. Very strategic race as
well – saving the tyres, saving the battery always, in case you need it on a
DRS opportunity for Checo. And yeah, honestly, I thought that I had things
under control in the last stint, until maybe five laps to the end, where I
started pushing a little bit more. I had more juice in the tyres and I
thought everything was fine. And Checo was playing the same game. He had
good tyres at the end of the race and he overtook me two laps to the end.
And I thought ‘OK, this is gone’ and then I had one more chance and it was
enough.
Q: How did you stay ahead of him without DRS for so many laps?
FA: I think when you run just in front of another car, you have better
downforce, you have clean air and that was maybe good for maintenance of
tyre management. And he was struggling a little bit to go into Turns 10, 11
and 12 behind another car. And that was probably the game that we were
playing. Those three corners were crucial for the overtaking opportunity.
And yeah, when you are the car in front, you have better grip, always.
Q: How much of a shot in the arm is this, for both you and the team, after
what's been a handful of very difficult races for Aston Martin?
FA: It is very nice. I think we've been struggling for a few months. But the
last two races were probably quite painful. We had to experiment a little
bit on a few things on the car to really understand the direction that we
were going and we have to go for next year's car as well. So those races
were painful, especially Mexico. I think we were very slow as a team, as a
performance and yeah, I think it was nice to see everyone in the team very
focused, the determination in the team was so nice from the outside to see
and to go deep in the analysis and get back stronger here in Interlagos. So
that was nice to witness from the outside, in a way, and to see everyone
united into the same direction. And yeah, I was a little bit concerned, no
doubt, for the last few races and maybe the final part of the championship
and now, yeah, I cannot wait to go to Vegas. So it's a very different energy
when you have a performing car.
Q: Well, can you continue this for the last two races?
FA: I think so. At least closer to these than Mexico, that's for sure. I
think there are a couple of things that have been understood inside the team
and the direction to go and we had some hopes for this race and they proved
to be right. And now, why not to be competitive in the last two. I don't
know if [it would be] the level of the podium. Today, we had a good race. We
had Charles, obviously, going off on the formation lap with the problem. We
had the Mercedes underperforming, Checo starting at the back, so there were
a couple of factors that helped us to be on the podium. But, you know,
hopefully in the mix, that will be a happy place for us.
Q: Talking of happy, how much did you enjoy today?
FA: Normal.
QUEsTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Barbara De Oliveira Medonça – Globo.com) Max, no matter what happens in
Vegas and Abu Dhabi, at the end of the 2023 season, you have won at least
77.2% of the races of the season. So you've officially beaten Ascari’s 1952
record of 75%. So we're officially looking at the most dominant season in
Formula 1 history. Do these numbers still resonate with you? Do they still
motivate you? Or has it all gotten a bit too familiar?
MV: It's not about that. I mean, it's not something that when I joined
Formula 1, I need to have a 75% win record over a season you know. These
kinds of things come along when everything just works really well. You know,
I feel good in the car, the car is very competitive, and the team barely
makes mistakes as well. So then you can get a season like we are having. So
for me it's more about just enjoying the moment and trying to maximise every
single opportunity.
Q: (Jesus Balseiro – Diario AS) Fernando, can you elaborate a bit more? How
were you managing to keep Checo behind? Different lines, maybe? Different
use of the kerbs, as we could see from the outside? And especially how did
you manage to keep yourself close to the Red Bull for the last attempt?
FA: I don't know. I think, as I said before, being the car in front, you
have a little bit of an advantage in terms of grip in the last three
corners. So I was just making sure… Not making any mistake in those three
corners, because if not, Checo will be too close. I was using the energy
also in the straights just to make sure that there was no opportunity for
Checo. And yeah, in the lines, we were just changing lines sometimes. I
didn't want to be always on the same line, if possible, like this. If he
goes on the inside, I was from time to time on the inside from time to time
on the outside. So it was not a clear direction for him to really change the
racing line and take the opportunity for some clean air. So I was just
trying to get some turbulence to his front nose.
Q: (Maria Clara Castro – Car Magazine, Brazil) Congratulations to all three
of you, but my question goes to Lando. You said on Thursday, during the
press conference, that you didn't have great memories from Brazil. So
looking back to the whole weekend in general, would you say that Brazil has
at least a little bit won Landinho’s heart?
LN: Yeah, I now love Brazil, it’s one of my favourite places. Yeah, I mean,
I just haven't had any good weekends. It's not that I have not liked Brazil.
I've loved it. And you know, I'm going to spend the next four days here. I
came out already on the Monday before and spent some time with my friends.
So I do enjoy it here. And, you know, away from the circuit I've always
enjoyed. I just haven't had any good races and I think of course this
weekend has turned things around a little bit, so yes, it's definitely been
a positive weekend. It’s definitely boosted my confidence here in Brazil as
an outline. And I think that's a very good thing. So I've enjoyed it. Yes,
it's been a good weekend. Another pole… Pole position? I would never count a
Sprint race pole like a proper pole or a Sprint race win as a proper win.
But yeah, I think it's been a very good weekend from start to finish and
I've enjoyed it. I enjoy the challenges, I enjoy the people and I have a lot
of friends here, like I said then. So for Landin, Land.. between Portuguese
and… Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese. I didn't want to say it wrong. I'm
not going to say Brazilian. There is quite a … Landinho and ‘Lanjinho’… I'm
still working on it.
Q: (Pedro Krug – RF1 Journalismo) Lando, today you managed to keep the same
pace as Max for part of the race? Do you think if the team gives you a car
to fight for wins next year, maybe a title?
LN: Maybe. I've just been just saying to Max, since we bought this upgrade
to Austria, I've been the second highest scoring driver on the grid. I think
we've been the second highest scoring team, potentially. Of course, we've
taken some massive steps forward and at the same time, considering we’re
talking about fighting the Red Bull, I think it's still a very, very good
thing, for what we've achieved this year. We're talking about one of the
best drivers in Formula 1 ever, in one of the most dominating cars and
obviously it’s a pairing and things have to go well together, but we're
talking about a guy who's scored 16…. Is it 17, oh, 17, I apologise… one of
the most dominated years in Formula 1 history. And for us to go from where
we were in Bahrain to getting close and talking about fighting a Red Bull I
think are very good signs for us. And we know we still have plenty more
things to come next year. So I'm excited. Having that as a thought, it’s
quite a faraway thought. I don't want to think of that just now, there’s no
point thinking of it until next year but I'll be optimistic and I believe we
can do it as a team.
Q: (Bernardo Correa Bercht - Correio do Povo) Fernando, a bit of a nostalgia
question: I wanted you to compare this drive today, the defensive drive and
stuff, with back in 2005, Imola against Michael Schumacher.
FA: Yes, I do remember. (To Lando) How old were you? Five!? It was easier in
2005 because it was non-DRS. So that was probably easier. Now with the DRS,
it seems a little bit different and you have to play things a little bit
differently as well. And tyre management is also very different than back
then, where you can maybe push the tyre all the way.
Q: (Q: (Bernardo Correa Bercht - Correio do Povo) But if you didn’t have DRS
you couldn’t come back?
FA: Yeah, true, true. If in 2005 you lose the position, then it's bye bye,
you cannot recover and here I had another chance. It has been introduced to
provide a little bit better show and today is a good example of that because
you get overtaken two laps from the end and then you have another chance,
especially here in Brazil. We saw yesterday as well, when there is an
overtaking done into Turn 1, there is a possibility - a strong possibility -
that into Turn 4 someone will get the position back. So that's why we see
some very nice battles in races always in Interlagos. It has been a
spectacular weekend, as always here in Brazil. Sometimes it's the weather
providing this great show and I think this weekend without any rain or any
weather we saw incredible races. So there is something in this track that
always give a perfect opportunity for Formula 1 to shine and it was nice.
Q: (Jake Boxall-Legge – Autosport) Lando and potentially Max as well. Lando
obviously made a fantastic attempt to try and get the lead for a Max. We saw
you fall away a little bit after that. Was that a sort of strategic retreat
and you were going to come back at him later or was that just a matter of
tyres falling away? And Max, obviously you've not had much competition out
on track this season. Was it enjoyable to have a little bit of a battle with
Lando? And is it something that, even though you've made all of these great
races and had all of these wins, you're missing that element of it?
LN: Yeah, it was a strategic retreat! The opportunity to race against Max
was only going to be for a few laps. We weren't going to find, all of a
sudden, the pace we needed to compete against him for a whole race. And
Fernando was behind me. We know that their race pace, especially when the
majority of the time when it's high deg and certain things that they can
have very good race pace. So yesterday he didn't have clean air, today he
was going to be in an opportunity, in a position to potentially just achieve
a lot more and I didn't want to compromise my own race by having one more
attempt. At the same time, I was low on battery and those types of things.
And if you overheat the tyres too much too early you can pay the price quite
heavily. I tried. It wasn't worth a second attempt as much as I would have
loved to and I think potentially could have done. Just it wasn't worth the
risk and potential consequences of then being in the hands of Fernando and
the people behind. So yeah, it was good fun. I thought if there was a little
bit more space, or if I was literally a couple metres further down, things
could have been a little bit different. But at the same time, to then try to
keep Max behind for the rest of the race would have been a whole new
challenge. So, good that we're getting there and I had an attempt. I think
that's one of my first attempts at really trying to race past him, ever, in
my career in Formula 1, which is a good thing, but yeah, that last little
thing needs to click and then we can do it more often.
MV: Yeah, I don't mind of course fighting but I've also done many years in
F1 where you win two races a year and the rest you are driving to be P5, so
I'm just enjoying the moment and embracing it and also enjoying driving of
course up front with a bit of a gap.
Q: (Fred Ferret – L’Equipe) Fernando, is there a move that you are
particularly proud of in that race, defending or attacking Checo?
FA: Obviously the last lap, overtaking him, it was quite a lot of commitment
because we were both all or nothing in a few corners. But I think to be
honest, the most important overtaking of the race has been Hamilton into
Turn 4 on lap one. That changed my race. If I start P4 and I have to fight
with Hamilton in the first stint even if I can eventually get him from lap
10 or whatever, my tyres will never be in a condition to extend the first
stint and then have a tyre advantage to Checo in the second stint and third
stint, so for me there is one crucial moment of my race and it’s lap one,
into Turn 4 with Hamilton.
Q: (Rodrigo França - Car Magazine) We're heading to Las Vegas, the third
race in the US. Of course Liberty Media turns some of Americans’ emotions of
Formula 1. Do you drivers like it, the behind the scenes stories that
Netflix and everything or are you just focused on the driving part?
MV: No. No. I don't know, probably I'm a bit more old school in that. I wish
social media never existed. Freedom of speech, right?
FA: Yeah. I'm very focused on the racing and not on this show. I never saw
any of this Drive to Survive, even Season 1 or whatever, I never saw any
episode. Did you?
MV: Do you drive to survive? I drive to have fun.
FA: On Saturdays, yes. We go there, we race even sometimes the parade laps
or presentations and things like that, they are not always in our dream
preparation before the race. So we try to balance. We know it’s important
for the sport but I think drivers, teams, even for you guys in the media
it’s a very long season, a lot of travelling and we just go for racing, this
is what we love but the outside package is sometimes a little bit too much
but we understand it.
LN: I pretty much echo their thoughts to be honest, nothing much different.
I watched, I think, the first episode I was ever in, which was end of Season
1 and that was it. That was all I saw. The thing is, when you know
everything that goes on, it's nice when they make you look good but then
sometimes they also make you look bad. And it's like the real truth at the
end of the day. It's still a show, it's to entertain people. It's not there
to provide maybe the most honest things about everything. I know, it's for
the business, right? It's a business, Formula 1, it's an entertainment. As
much as I don't do it for entertainment, if it didn't get televised and all
of those things wouldn't really matter. I just want to do the driving, and
that's why I'm here. I'm not here to do all the interviews and enjoy all of
this stuff. I love Formula 1 because I love to drive and compete against
these guys and race and do all of that stuff. And even since I've started,
the media has risen a lot more, but in the business world, it probably makes
sense because there's more money and all of those things, and that's
normally how it works. But as drivers, it's not the thing that we enjoy too
much of, but some perks of it, I guess. |
