According to Horner, “outstanding” Verstappen was unstoppable in the event’s tumultuous Brazilian GP

The “outstanding” Max Verstappen was unstoppable, according to Christian Horner, despite the several stops and starts in the Brazilian Grand Prix. With three races left in 2024, the Dutchman nearly sealed a fourth world title with an incredible victory at Interlagos, coming from seventeenth on the field.

Verstappen was forced to start toward the rear of the grid after being unable to advance past Q2 due to a red light. Meanwhile, Lando Norris, who was competing for the championship, started on pole position and appeared to be closing the gap in the title battle. The Red Bull Racing driver, however, remained composed in the face of the torrential downpour in Sao Paulo, making light work of the Grand Prix’s many stops and starts to secure a 13-second victory, all because to the heroic efforts of his pit crew.

After numerous accidents at Interlagos in the dangerous conditions, many safety cars were brought out. During one VSC stoppage, George Russell—who had taken the lead from Norris at the start—and Norris himself came into the pits to replace tyres. But Red Bull held off Verstappen and passed Norris while they waited for a safety car or a red flag to allow them a free pit stop.

Because of Franco Colapinto’s massive collision into the barrier on the start/finish straight, they were able to secure the latter. This meant that Verstappen, Esteban Ocon, and Pierre Gasly—two Alpine riders—got their strategy right and dominated the race. After the race resumed, Verstappen maintained his dominant performance, passing Ocon to claim the lead and eventually winning by more than thirteen seconds.

Horner discusses the flawless calls made by Red Bull

When asked about the crucial calls that contributed to Verstappen’s victory, team manager Horner said: “We could see the weather was getting horrendous.” This was said after the Grand Prix. However, his tires were in decent condition, thus the difference between his current set of inters and new ones was little. So we made up our minds: let’s go far. The race was red-flagged this afternoon, turning our morning misfortune into a stroke of luck.

After that, the race got going, perhaps too soon, but he [Verstappen] kept it easy, and Horner went on to lavish Verstappen with praise for his commanding performance and one of his best victories to date. Just as Ocon was beginning to reel in the lead, another safety car appeared. After that, his braking maneuver into turn one was really sensational.

Verstappen makes one demand regarding becoming a four-time Formula One champion