A relieved Max Verstappen admitted he had struggled for pace in his Red Bull on Sunday after he resisted late pressure from Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz to win the Canadian Grand Prix.
The 24-year-old Dutchman, who started his 150th F1 race from pole position, had to defend vigilantly in his Red Bull against the Ferrari for 15 laps after a late Safety Car allowed the Spaniard to fit fresh medium compound tyres.
“That Safety Car didn’t help me,” said Verstappen. “He had fresh tyres and those last 15 laps were flat out and when it is like that you can’t make a mistake.
“I would have preferred to have been attacking at the end, instead of defending, but luckily for us it all worked out and it was very exciting.”
Verstappen now leads Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez, who retired with transmission problems, by 46 points in the title race.