Verstappen breaks the norm and bends the Mercedes

Max Verstappen is a different rider than the rest and that is probably why he fits so well in Red Bull, a unique team in essence, born from the propaganda pretenses of an energy drink company that prefers to invest hundreds of millions in creating its own story first. than spending it on conventional advertising. A week ago, the Dutchman lacked half a lap to snatch the victory from Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone, where the reigning champion claimed one of the most agonizing victories of his career, one wheel less after an inopportune last-minute blowout. This Sunday, on the same stage, Verstappen and his team gave an authentic recital based on that singularity they share: Hasselt's boy broke Mercedes' streak after proposing a strategy against the tires, a tactic that only works in circuits in which, for some reason or another, the Silver Arrows are exposed. In this case, it was the very high degradation of the tires that opened the door to surprise, something that this championship needs to happen more often.

Verstappen's triumph marks the ninth in his service record and the first in the structure of the red buffalo at Silverstone, his home, since 2012. Hamilton finished second and added his 155th podium, a figure that matches him in that absolute record to Michael Schumacher. Valtteri Bottas finished third while Carlos Sainz was penalized for another defective stop in the garages - one of the pistols ran aground - and finished 13th.

Risking with hard tires

They say glory is for those who take risks and Red Bull loves to bet big. Precisely for this reason, Verstappen - he was fourth on the grid - was the only one of the top ten to start with the hardest tires available, a circumstance that leads to the conclusion that the plan put into practice was raised on Saturday. The play was good in any case; whether the tires of the first ones were cooking as it finally happened, but also if they resisted. As long as he could maintain an acceptable turning pace, time played on his side, so you just had to be patient. That, however, is not one of his virtues, a circumstance that led his team to call him to order so that he would loosen up as soon as he started. “We came to run, right? I'm not going to lean back and drive like a grandmother, ”Mad Max replied over the radio before events rushed in his favor.

Bottas and Hamilton, placed at the front of the pack, were forced to stop because their compounds were fried (laps 14 and 15, respectively). Verstappen, with a tougher mix, stretched as much as he could (until lap 27), to give the final thrust and leave the only two rivals who, like him, had a chance of winning without reply. By the time Hamilton made his second visit to the garages, it was too late to tie the knot with the leader, who crossed the line making fun of his mechanics because of how nervous he had noticed them. The boy, at 22 years old, did not flinch.