Over the last decade, Max Verstappen has won grands prix in such a vast variety of circumstances that there is now a suitable Verstappen victory to illustrate every page of the ‘Book of Motorsport Clichés’.
If it’s ‘to finish first, first you must finish,’ look at his historic maiden win at Barcelona in 2016.
‘Rubbing is racing’? Why, Austria 2019 of course.
‘It ain’t over ‘til it’s over’? Abu Dhabi 2021.
And now, the 2024 Spanish Grand Prix will forever serve as proof, if proof was ever needed, that you can never win a grand prix in the first corner – you can only lose it.
Lando Norris had waited almost three years for his second career grand prix pole position when he finally achieved it at the end of an enthralling qualifying session. Although he had managed to best Verstappen over the course of a qualifying lap of the Circuit de Catalunya, admitting he’d thrown caution to the Catalan winds to do so, Norris knew that pole would leave him vulnerable on the almost 600-metre sprint to the first corner on Sunday.
“It’s a long run down to turn one,” he said. “It’s probably one of the places you don’t want to start on pole.”
McLaren took no chances. They equipped Norris with the best possible form of defence with which to fend off Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell and the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jnr behind him – his last remaining fresh set of soft tyres. Although the Ferraris sported the same, Verstappen and the Mercedes pair opted for used softs for the start – though only the Red Bull driver still had a fresh set available.
When the starting lights extinguished, both front row starters shot off the line together. But despite being on the dirty side of the grid, Verstappen pulled level with the McLaren’s rear axle before they had even reached the circuit’s famous timing tower. As a reward for his efforts, Norris left minimal room for him on the inside, with Verstappen’s right wheels running onto the grass.
“I think the first launch was quite okay, and then I got a little bit alongside,” Verstappen later explained. “I had to go a little bit on the grass.”
Verstappen was quick to cry foul on his radio but afterwards admitted: “If you turn it around, would I have done the same? I probably would have…”
Preoccupied with each other, the pair left a gaping hole on the outside line. Russell, having…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at RaceFans…