Van der Garde on mentally strong Verstappen: "That was great"

"Nobody expected to be able to start the race at all," Van der Garde told Motorsport.com. For the former Formula 1 driver last Sunday was again the confirmation that Verstappen is mentally very strong. "He knocks it off, the team manages to repair the car and then he puts down such a start and opening lap right away. How he drove that race and how he got over the finish line and thanked the guys, that was great".

Verstappen popular within Red Bull

That the team was able to replace the entire front of the RB16 in fifteen minutes is very clever. According to Van der Garde it also plays a role that Verstappen is very popular with the Red Bull mechanics. "Of course those guys want to show something too. When Max arrived on the grid with the damage, they were like: 'Okay boy, we're going to fix this for you'. Then you see again how great everyone thinks he is. At a moment like that, they take an extra step for him."

According to the 35-year-old racing driver, Verstappen in his outlap did 'take too much risk'. "But Max just knows that in circumstances like these you have to be able to get a grip right away," he says. "He wants to know where the dry lines are, how hard you can brake before a turn and how hard you can push. That's the key for him to be able to overtake people in the race right away," concludes Van der Garde.