Max Verstappen felt the gamble to switch to Intermediate tyres when the rain first fell at the Hockenheimring was worth taking, but he knew almost immediately that it was not going to work, with the track trying up quickly.
The Aston Martin Red Bull Racing driver fell behind Lewis Hamilton in the pecking order as a result of the move and the subsequent switch back to dry weather tyres a couple of laps later, but thanks to Sebastian Vettel’s retirement, he was able to reclaim fourth position at the chequered flag.
Verstappen felt he had a strong car throughout the German Grand Prix, although it was not enough to be in any kind of position to challenge either Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport or Scuderia Ferrari on outright pace.
“After such a chaotic race I think finishing fourth is a good result and the car felt strong throughout the race,” said Verstappen. “It was a hard day for decision making due to the late changes in the weather.
“I had a small slide at Turn 6 when it first started to rain so I decided to pit for Intermediates. As soon as I came out of the pits and got to Turn 6 it was dry again. I knew it was not going to work, it could have done but unfortunately it didn’t continue raining enough. Sometimes these decisions work for you, sometimes not as we experienced today.
“The safety car meant it didn’t impact the result but it was worth trying at the time. The heavy rain came a fraction too late in the day, perhaps we could have done more but instead we had to settle for dryer conditions.”
With the Hungarian Grand Prix only a week away, Verstappen feels there is potential for a much better result at the Hungaroring than in Germany, and he is eager to get the weekend underway on Friday morning.
“We should be in better shape to get a good result in Hungary so I’m already looking forward to next weekend,” said the Dutchman.
