Verstappen: Mercedes will be very strong in France

Verstappen might have won the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix had the Pirelli on his car not burst with victory in sight but, cruelly that's as far as it got. It was not all bad luck, as good fortune (for him) did intervene as rival Lewis Hamilton helped with damage limitation by switching himself out of a sure podium.

Thus the Dutchman heads to Paul Ricard leading the championships standings by four-points after six rounds without any illusions: "I’m feeling good but I'm sure Mercedes will be very strong on the 'normal' tracks again.

"We have to keep pushing and keep improving right to the very end because it’s never enough. So far the season has been pretty good to us but we need to remember that there are still a lot of races ahead of us.

"I am happy with the race results that we have had so far and that we are leading the championship, but we also have to be there leading it in Abu Dhabi, that’s all that matters," he explained in the team's weekend preview.

Of the Baku disappointment, Verstappen was philosophical: "Of course I would have liked to have won and it’s fair to say that we were on course to win in Baku, but that’s racing and these things happen. Sometimes it’s out of your hands so we just have to keep going and move on.

"We are still leading the championship and of course I would like to be leading with more points but it is what it is."

Baku also marked the first time since the Daniel Ricciardo days that there have been two blue cars in winning contention. Newcomer to the team Sergio Perez took the first five races to get dialled into the environment and delivered on the sixth.

After playing the wingman role to perfection until required, when he needed to step it up to make up for his teammate's misfortune, he did so and with it Red Bull sent their rivals a signal: we have two cars now in the hunt.

The importance of the Mexican veteran's first victory for Red Bull was noted by Verstappen: "It’s great to have two cars up at the front fighting for the championship and also scoring the points. Baku was a great example of that and how it should be done.

"It’s great that Checo was able to make the gap to Mercedes bigger in the constructor’s championship and that he’s now third in the driver’s championship."

After a decade off the F1 calendar, the French Grand Prix returned in 2018, in which Verstappen finished second to Hamilton; in 2019 the Dutchman was fourth in a race Hamilton also won. Last year it did not happen due to COVID-19.

Looking ahead to the weekend on the Cote d'Azur, Verstappen said: "The Circuit Paul Ricard is a fast track. There are a fast few corners towards the end of the lap and you also have to be quite careful with tyre degradation.

"There’s also a lot of runoff so sometimes it’s a bit weird because there is so much space, which is of course completely different than the two street circuits we’ve just been to.

"I’m looking forward to going back there and hopefully stepping on the top step of the podium," added Verstappen who will be targeting his 13th F1 victory on Sunday.