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Fernando Alonso recently spoke about Max Verstappen's "underestimated ability" that sets him apart from the entire grid and helps in his spell of victories.
Verstappen delighted his home fans as he won the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix to extend his world championship lead over teammate Sergio Perez and equal Sebastian Vettel's record of nine consecutive race wins.
Meanwhile, Alonso finished P2 to clinch his seventh podium finish of the season. Speaking to the media, including Sportskeeda, after the race, Alonso said that it is often underestimated what the Dutchman is achieving in the sport.
"Yeah, it is underestimated sometimes what Max is achieving," Alonso said. "I think to win in such a dominant matter in any of the professional sports, it is so complicated."
"So to be at the same level of him, obviously, we have a lot of self-confidence, drivers in general, so I do believe that I can do as good as well," he added.
Max Verstappen has so far won 11 out of the 13 races that have been held this season so far. He is in pursuit of his third consecutive world championship, leading the standings from his teammate, Sergio Perez with 138 points currently.
Fernando Alonso on Max Verstappen's 2023 domination over the grid
It is quite apparent that Max Verstappen can go on to win many more races this season. His getting into the lead of every single race is almost unchallenged by any other driver as the Red Bull RB19 breezes past every single car on the grid.
Alonso feels that to perform so well is based on a connection that a driver establishes with their car. He stated that drivers try to give their 100% during races and that is what brings them success. He said:
"I think you need to enter in a mood, in a state that you are connected with a car. I think on days like today, I felt that I was at my best and have been giving 100% of what I felt and my abilities on a racing car, but maybe in Spa I was not at that level or in Austria or something like that."
Alonso added that there is always some room for improvement for the drivers and bring them up to the 100% mark. However, Max Verstappen is well beyond that point and consistently performs above the mark, and hence keeps on dominating in the sport.
"So you always feel that there is room to improve and you are not 100% happy with yourself, as I am today. Max is achieving that 100% more often than us at the moment, than any of the drivers, so that’s why he’s dominating," he added.
