Juancho’s prediction
Max Verstappen and Red Bull have returned to being protagonists in the Miami GP. The Dutchman placed in the third row in the Sprint Qualifying and finished ahead of Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari in the Sprint, then in Qualifying he even pushed into the front row alongside Antonelli.
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Verstappen’s race immediately went uphill with the spin at the start which – as controlled as possible – relegated him to the mid-pack with tires certainly not in good condition. The Safety Car allowed Red Bull to bet on an immediate switch to hard tires, but the rain did not come and Verstappen thus found himself losing ground towards the end of the race, still finishing in fifth position, the best result of the season after a thoroughly respectable performance.
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According to Juan Pablo Montoya, Verstappen is too important an asset for F1 to let the Dutchman fight without being able to aim for the top step of the podium and for this reason he expects Verstappen’s move looking towards 2027 to be the right one: “McLaren spoke with Verstappen last year, but decided they couldn’t afford what Max was asking for – Montoya told Betpack – a year ago Max could afford to ask for any amount, now I believe he would accept a pay cut just to get a competitive car. Verstappen only wants to win and has to manage the fact that he is not in a position to do so, it’s the first time and it’s not easy. In F1 Max has so much power and such a large following that it’s important for Max to win races. I think F1 will make sure to help him find himself in the right place.”
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