Verstappen: Fine to think different, but we need to be faster

Despite some early promise—going fastest in FP2 having missed FP1—Verstappen struggled throughout the F1 weekend in Mexico City, his car lacking grip on race pace, while qualifying was not even better, as he was fifth fastest after the team went through many changes to the car, reverting on some of them, always unsure how to fix the issues.

In the Grand Prix on Sunday, Red Bull started Verstappen on the Medium tyres while all those around him were on the Soft, and while he had a decent start, the line he chose meant he ended up on the kerbs into Turn 1 while fighting with the two Ferraris and Mercedes' George Russell, and as such, he locked up and ran onto the grass.

He escaped a penalty after that incident, as he gave the place he gained to Lewis Hamilton but then went on to clash with him a few laps later in what was a chaotic race start for the Dutchman, but he also emerged without a penalty.

After a long run on Mediums, Verstappen switched to Soft for a final stint, opting for a one-stop strategy while others around him went for two stops. He drove what his race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, labeled as an "insane" stint while delivering words of encouragement over the radio. He caught up with Charles Leclerc towards the end, with an unnecessary Virtual Safety Car denying us a final battle between the #1 RB21 and the #16 SF-25.

Speaking about his team's successful strategy after the race, Verstappen said: "It’s fine to think different, but the most important thing is we need to be faster.

“We had some really good races, but even in the races we won, if you look at the tyre management, then McLaren are still very strong.

“Then in a weekend when they have more pace in general, you have no chance. The softs were getting worn," he lamented.

As for missing the chance to pass Leclerc for second, Verstappen said: "It would have been a nice battle to the end, but that’s fine.

"It happens. Sometimes it works for you, and sometimes it works against you with a Virtual Safety Car or a Safety Car. I was getting very excited to battle with Leclerc.

"We always have good battles," the four-time F1 Champion concluded.

Verstappen remains third in the F1 Drivers' Championship, but closed in more on the top, 36 points behind new leader, Lando Norris.

(Quotes from Sky Sports F1)