Sebastian Vettel says that Max Verstappen still has a tendency to move in the braking zone whilst defending his position, as was seen during the British Grand Prix on Sunday, but also feels the Dutchman has calmed down his driving.
The Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull Racing drivers were embroiled in an early race battle for what was then third position, with Vettel first pushing the Dutchman off track at Stowe before Verstappen did the same at Club.
It was the Club move that irked Vettel the most, with the German feeling that Verstappen still can be ‘a bit jumpy’ when defending his position.
“It’s not right to say I expected it, but we know he is a bit jumpy on that,” said Vettel to Autosport. “He is trying to defend as hard as possible, but at some point you need to stick to your line.
“I’m sure he will calm down, it’s still not that many races he has done.”
Vettel admitted that Verstappen did not overstep the mark during their battle, but he did question why the Dutchman was so robust in defence when it was obvious that the Ferrari driver was obviously quicker.
“No, not really, but you can argue on that – what did it bring him?” said Vettel about Verstappen possibly overstepping the mark. “The fact that I ran out of tyres and it blows up, that’s something nobody could’ve seen.
“It was clear we were faster, we got him in the pit stop. We weren’t fighting anybody else so it’s fine. He has calmed down a lot already, so it’s normal.”