P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Verstappen: "Happier with pole than sprint race win" at F1 Chinese GP
In Shanghai’s 19-lap sprint, Verstappen secured a 13-second win over Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, followed by claiming a dominant pole position for the proper grand prix on Sunday. Despite not being a fan of the sprint format, Verstappen expressed more happiness with his pole than his sprint win, appreciating the revised format with two separate parc fermé periods. Verstappen described it as a “more logical and nicer format,” suggesting it allows for adjustments to the car after the sprint but found the transition from racing to qualifying a bit odd. Despite his sprint win, Verstappen and his race engineer made changes to the Red Bull RB20’s setup for the upcoming events, aiming to enhance performance and gain insights on degradation. With Red Bull’s 100th pole in F1 secured by Verstappen – contributing 37 poles himself – he acknowledged it as a remarkable milestone for the team, also crediting Sebastian Vettel’s previous contributions. Verstappen remains optimistic about the car’s performance for the races, emphasizing the importance of adaptability based on changing conditions.
