Verstappen Targets Las Vegas Victory as He Hunts Down His Fourth Title
After an awe-inspiring victory in Brazil, Max Verstappen hopes the momentum will propel him to his fourth world title.
Eyes on the Las Vegas Grand Prix
With the paddock preparing for the chilly spectacle of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, all eyes are on the Dutchman’s commanding lead in the standings over Lando Norris. A top finish this weekend, regardless of where the Brit places, would secure Verstappen the title.
Recent Performance and Challenges
Verstappen has not won two races in a row since June, when he triumphed in Canada and Spain. However, his remarkable drive from P17 to P1 in Brazil could provide the energy needed to repeat the feat. Red Bull appears to have resolved the car issues that compromised their performance after the summer break, extending Verstappen’s lead to 62 points over his McLaren rival.
Focused on the Race
When asked if the team had prepared anything special in case he secures the championship in Las Vegas, Verstappen responded, “If they did, I don’t want to know! I just want to focus on the weekend and try to have a good performance. Brazil was a very welcome victory for us after a while, but this is again very different.
“Going off the last races we were definitely not the quickest car, so we’ll see what we can do here. Last year we had a fun race here but Ferrari was very fast already. This track seems to suit their car but I hope that we can be in that fight this weekend to try and win again.”
Historic Victory in Las Vegas
At the inaugural race around the dazzling Las Vegas Strip last season, the 27-year-old took victory ahead of Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez after recovering from a time penalty in an incident-filled event. A similar result would round off his rollercoaster season perfectly, but while the threat of Norris has seemingly diminished, Verstappen remains cautious about his potential fourth title.
“It looks a bit better now in the championship but we’ll see this weekend,” he summarized. “We have good hopes to be competitive but I don’t know how competitive. I do feel that even in Brazil in the dry, we were quite decent finally again in race pace.
“This, of course, is a completely different track, completely different temperatures. I just hope that we can continue that momentum a little bit. There’s plenty to race for still – even in the constructors’ I think there is a chance so we’ll see what we can do.”
Tight Battle in Constructors’ Championship
The battle between the top teams is tight as they head into the final races, with Red Bull just 49 points behind leaders McLaren and 13 points adrift of Ferrari. The Milton Keynes outfit could make a major statement by sealing the drivers’ title earlier rather than later.
Focus on Scoring Points
Verstappen said, “I’m just looking forward to the weekend. Three races left, you’re getting close to the end of the season and it’s looking good in the championship but we still need to score a lot of points so we’ll just focus on that.
“Once we are doing that then you get closer to the end result. Of course, the target is to win the championship.”
