F1 news LIVE: Christian Horner sends dig McLaren’s way after Max Verstappen victory
Follow reaction after Verstappen’s brilliant win ahead of both McLarens in Emilia Romagna
Max Verstappen’s brilliant opening-corner move on Oscar Piastri fired him to victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
The Dutchman clinched a fourth successive win at Imola in Red Bull’s 400th race to end championship leader Piastri’s three-race winning run after taking the lead at the first chicane.
Verstappen was in control of the race but had to see off a late challenge, after a safety car slashed his lead, to clinch his second win of the season.
McLaren opted not to order Piastri to allow Lando Norris past in a bid to challenge Verstappen but the British driver ultimately made a brave move on his team-mate with five laps to go to finish second. Piastri’s lead to Norris was cut to 13 points, with Verstappen now 22 points behind the Australian.
Follow live updates from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix with The Independent
F1 driver standings after Imola GP
3. Max Verstappen – 124 points
4. George Russell – 99 points
5. Charles Leclerc – 61 points
7. Kimi Antonelli – 48 points
8. Alex Albon – 40 points
9. Esteban Ocon – 14 points
10. Lance Stroll – 14 points
11. Carlos Sainz – 11 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda – 10 points
13. Isack Hadjar – 7 points
14. Pierre Gasly – 7 points
15. Nico Hulkenberg - 6 points
17. Liam Lawson – 0 points
18. Fernando Alonso – 0 points
19. Jack Doohan – 0 points
20. Gabriel Bortoleto – 0 points
‘Win it or bin it’: Christian Horner lauds Max Verstappen’s stunning overtake
Christian Horner praised Max Verstappen’s “win it or bin it” attitude towards racing after his first-lap overtake on Oscar Piastri led to an impressive victory at the Emilia Romagna GP.
Verstappen, starting second on the grid, capitalised on pole-sitter Piastri leaving a gap at the first braking zone at the start of the race.
The Dutchman, criticised for his racing on lap one at the last race in Miami, stormed ahead of the McLaren here and – despite two safety car interludes – looked assured out in front in sealing his second victory of the year.
Verstappen’s race-winning overtake in Imola reminds McLaren of F1 title credentials
FEATURE: Welcome to Maranello, Ferrari’s hometown where history weighs heavy on F1’s greatest team
Ahead of Ferrari’s home race in Imola, I spent a day in Maranello, the famous prancing horse emblem at every turn, dissecting the prestige of the Italian marque in contrast to the flaws of the present-day F1 team:
Read below:
Welcome to Maranello, Ferrari’s hometown where their glorious history weighs heavy
Lando Norris after finishing P2:
Lando: “It was a long race, not easy to overtake. We did what we could, Max drove a good race – they were quick, probably a bit quicker.
“We had a battle between Oscar and myself, a bit tense – we’d love to be up fighting with Max but they were too quick.
Piastri on the virtual safety car:
"It was tricky, the virtual safety car was perfectly timed for [Max] Verstappen and Lando [Norris] and I used both my hard tyres at that point, it made the last restart tricky. I tried my best to hold on to second, I had nowhere near enough grip, so third it is.
“I tried my best, but I didn't have grip and it was inevitable that he [Norris] was going to get past, but I wasn't going to give up without a fight."
Top-10 in Emilia Romagna GP:
1. Max Verstappen
2. Lando Norris
3. Oscar Piastri
4. Lewis Hamilton
5. Alex Albon
6. Charles Leclerc
7. George Russell
8. Carlos Sainz
9. Isack Hadjar
10. Yuki Tsunoda
Oscar Piastri after finishing P3:
“I just braked too early, it was a good move by Max as well. Disappointing obviously, we made a few poor calls afterwards too - it’s one to review.
“We’ll look back at that one and see what we can do a bit better.”
On Norris overtake: “It was tricky, I tried my best to hang on, just didn’t have the grip, it was inevitable but I wasn’t going to give up without a fight.”
Constructors' Championship standings
1. McLaren - 279
2. Mercedes - 147
3. Red Bull - 131
4. Ferrari - 114
5. Williams - 51
6. Haas - 20
7. Aston Martin - 14
8. Racing Bulls - 10
9. Alpine - 7
10. Sauber - 6
McLaren’s Andrea Stella on Verstappen:
“Fair play to Max, today he was very fast.
“We tried a few things... deviating with the strategy which didn’t pay off today.
“We won the race in Saudi in corner one... today it was the opposite. Two McLarens on the podium, strong for the constructors and good points for both drivers.”
Next up Monaco
Charles Leclerc isn’t happy in his Ferrari.
A sixth placed finish at Imola, having started 11th on the grid represents a decent race but the Monegasque wants to be challenging for titles.
After the grand prix in Italy he was asked if he had any hopes of performing well at the next race in Monaco (his home one) and his reply was telling.
“No.”
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