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Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko reckons Max Verstappen could break the record for most wins in a season in 2022.
The Red Bull driver picked up his 11th win of the season at Monza on September 11th and made it look easy. Verstappen is now just two races away from equalling Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel's record of most wins in a season. With his first win at Monza, Verstappen has equalled Lewis Hamilton's career-best season win tally of 11 and is now on a five-race win streak.
The most impressive aspect about Verstappen during this streak has been his ability to keep things level-headed while charging through the field. He has shown no unnecessary aggression or exaggerated reaction; everything has been smooth and calculated.
Speaking to Sky Germany, Marko said that the way Verstappen is making his wins look like a walk in the park, another three wins to break the record may not be beyond him. He said:
“He managed it relatively easily again. It was a pity the race ended under the Safety Car. We had the upper hand. but it was amazing how quickly he took the lead. Everything is fine, and now we need one (two) more win(s), then he will set the record. Maybe we can do 14 wins.”
Marko added that the decision to let the Monza race end behind the safety car was not right. Nevertheless, he was happy with another win for Verstappen and the team while admitting things could have got trickier with the lapped cars allowed to unlap. He said:
“That (ending behind the safety car) was certainly not the right decision. The Safety Car picked up the wrong driver and you have to stop the lapped ones being waved through. It doesn’t matter at all, and it would have been a great finish. Maybe tighter for us and a disadvantage, but we have to put the sport first.”
Max Verstappen now leads Charles Leclerc by 116 points in the driver standings.
Max Verstappen reflects on splendid drive at Monza
Max Verstappen picked up his 11th win of the season after starting from P7 and quickly making his way through the field.
When Ferrari gambled on a two-stop strategy with Charles Leclerc, it meant the Red Bull driver could manage his race and cruise to a win. Reflecting on his win, Verstappen said that he was happy to make a clean start as Red Bull showed better tire degradation and pace than their competitors. He said:
“The first lap I had to be careful, but we had a good start and were clean through the first chicane, and for me, that was the most important thing: to stay out of trouble. Then we were very quickly back up to P3 and even into P2, then I could set my sights on Charles, and I could see we had better tyre degradation. Overall if you look at the pace of our car this weekend, especially today, I think we were strong.”
Max Verstappen could wrap up his second straight championship in the next race in Singapore.
