Season of Verstappen is over: This is what he will remember the most!
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It was a dominant win by Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi to end a great season. A comfortable win, moreover, it seemed. Only in the early stages did the Dutchman have to fight for P1 with Charles Leclerc, as the two raced hard for the lead.
Verstappen had not yet done any longruns in Abu Dhabi. That created some uncertainties: "The first stint I didn't really know what to expect because I didn't do a long run so I probably took it a bit too easy in the beginning. I think also the medium was just not as good as expected so then we had to pit because I saw everyone around me also pitting. The hard tyres everything felt a bit more normal a bit easier to manage with the temperatures and basically I could extend my lead after that lap."
On his battle with Leclerc, Verstappen was upbeat: "Of course, the first lap you cannot take it easy. It was good. We raced well, I didn't expect Charles to go on the left into turn six, but it was a good move. At the same time, Charles also had to think about the championship for the team. I enjoyed it."
A thousand laps in the lead in '23
Over a thousand laps Verstappen drove while leading a Grand Prix this season. A milestone, which appears to have been deliberately targeted: "I knew it was on the cars. From the engineering side with the strategy we wanted to of course try and plan it in a way that I wouldn't pit too early so I just waited for others to pit to try and achieve that. It was not always the, let's say, the fastest strategy but I wanted to stay in the lead to get the laps in."
And so now the season is over. When Verstappen retires, one thing in particular will have stayed with him from 2023: "I think just the team spirit, not so much the wins or the whatever, poles or laps. I think just the enjoyment we had as a team because, yeah, the wins are great, of course. But I think it's also very important to have a good atmosphere in the team and have a lot of fun. And just the people that you work with. There's a lot of smart people in the team. And I also know that whatever you do in motor racing, I think it never will top that. So, yeah, just seeing everyone at work trying to do the best they can every day and give it all out there for you. That's really nice to see."
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