P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Christian Horner has delivered a warning to Ferrari and McLaren after Max Verstappen was left “pretty pumped” by Red Bull’s pace in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix sprint.
Christian Horner explained how Max Verstappen was very motivated by the Sao Paulo Grand Prix sprint, despite incurring a post-race five-second penalty that dropped him to fourth place. Verstappen, currently looking to defend against Lando Norris in the championship, was pleased with his performance, having dispatched Charles Leclerc and pressured the McLarens. Horner noted that Verstappen believed he could have challenged the McLarens more if he had overtaken Leclerc earlier. The Red Bull team was optimistic about the sprint race results and impressed by the unexpected performance of the RB20, which caught the whole F1 paddock off guard. Verstappen’s ability to match McLaren’s pace and stay in their slipstream for an extended period further added to the team’s positivity for the upcoming grand prix, after qualifying was postponed to Sunday due to weather conditions in São Paulo.
