F1 News
Former world champion predicts: 'At Suzuka, Verstappen will be there again'
- GPblog.com
With the Singapore Grand Prix still fresh in the memory, it remains to be seen whether Red Bull Racing's poor performance was an incident. Next weekend during the race at Suzuka, the Formula 1 world will get more clarity on that. Two-time world champion Emerson Fittipaldi, however, thinks Max Verstappen will strike back rock hard in Japan.
Disappointing Red Bull in Singapore
In Singapore, Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen just could not get the RB19 under control. The Dutchman struggled with the car's balance all weekend, resulting in an unexpected elimination in the second part of qualifying. Verstappen's winning streak also came to an abrupt end: the Red Bull driver did not progress beyond fifth place. Fittipaldi believes Red Bull's poor performance was a one-off and expects the Milton Keynes-based team to "just be there" again at Suzuka.
"It was very strange what happened to Red Bull at Singapore but they will be back to full strength in a conventional racetrack like Suzuka," the Brazilian told Vegasinsider.com. Fittipaldi attributes Red Bull's performance mainly to the distinct characteristics of the Marina Bay circuit and expects the RB19 to dominate again at Suzuka. "If you look at what happened to Red Bull in Singapore, I don't think that will happen to them in Japan. For sure Max will be back with a vengeance," Fittipaldi said.
The former driver is thoroughly enjoying the current Formula 1 season. He sees several top drivers competing for podium finishes and is enjoying it. Fittipaldi says:"If Singapore is to go by, we could have eight drivers fighting for top spots. Verstappen, Perez, Sainz, LeClerc, Hamilton, Russell, Norris and even Piastri. Very exciting."