F1: Max Verstappen relishing return to site of first win

His win at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix is famous as the Dutchman became the youngest driver ever to win an F1 GP.

Verstappen is one of five drivers to have not dropped a position on the first lap of a race in 2022, but he has had the most demanding task in defending his spot as he is the only one of those drivers to reach Q3 at every Grand Prix, the others are Esteban Ocon, Nicholas Latifi, Alex Albon and Mick Schumacher.

“We had an incredible week in Miami, I’ve had some time to rest with my family since and now I’m looking forward to driving in Barcelona again,” Verstappen said.

“I have a lot of good memories at the track from my first win in Formula One back in 2016 when I was 18. Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is a track that we all know very well as a Team due to amount of testing we have done there over the years, so unlike Miami, we have a substantial amount of data to use ahead of the race. Hopefully we can keep the momentum going from the last few races with a clean start from Friday onwards.”

Red Bull

Meanwhile, Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez has been working hard to help team Red Bull.

Perez pushing for more

Perez has been quickest in the qualifying speed trap at every race this year, with Max being second quickest at three of those races.

“Miami was a crazy week for us all and, while Max got the win and I collected important points, I didn’t leave satisfied,” Perez said.

“I always want to be on the podium and I knew I had the pace to beat the Ferraris so I was frustrated. If I can have a consistent weekend in the car then I know I can be up there and Max and I will be pushing for a repeat of Imola. Since Miami I have had a new baby, Emilio, so it would be amazing to welcome him to the world with a great result. We know the track in Barcelona very well because of pre-season testing so we know what to expect but the car we tested in February is very different from the car we are now driving, in a good way, and it will be interesting to see gains we have made since then.”