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FORMULA 1/ Impossible pass over Piastri, Verstappen: Here's how I did it
2025-05-20 14:31:41 / SPORT
Max Verstappen has a knack for making what seems impossible to his fellow drivers seem simple and achievable. We're talking about the spectacular overtake at Turn 2 in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, with which the Red Bull Dutchman stunned Oskar Piastre, taking the lead of the race, and then closing with a triumph in Italy.
For Verstappen it was his fourth consecutive victory at Imola and the 65th of his Formula 1 career, a success that came in a jubilee event for the Red Bull team, which on Sunday held the 400th Grand Prix in F1 history. “The start itself wasn’t that good, but I was still on the ideal line and I thought I’d try it from the outside. Everything went really well,” is how the four-time world champion describes the start at Imola.
MANOEUVRE — Perhaps for everyone Piastri appeared a little naive, starting well from the first position and being convinced that he had the lead in the race in his hands. But it was precisely this small excess of self-confidence that opened up the space into which Verstappen quickly threw himself with a whole car. Max delayed braking to the limits of human possibilities and overtook the Australian's McLaren car from the outside, leaving his rival stunned. But how did it turn out?
“I went in with more speed,” the Red Bull driver explains in more detail. “At a certain point you feel that kind of ‘impulse’ that takes you to Turn 3. And that’s when I realised I was ahead, but everything happens quickly. You have to be very precise, try not to go too far off the line. But yes, luckily, everything went well at that moment.” Piast may have been a bit naive, but on the other hand Verstappen imagined and executed an almost infinite braking, with the trajectory and sensitivity of a visionary. An extraordinary manoeuvre from Max and it’s really hard to blame Oscar for that moment.
OPEN WORLD — Formula 1 fans are thanking Verstappen, the man who is keeping a World Championship open that would otherwise be in the hands of the pair of Charles Leclerc (third place) in Saudi Arabia and a triumph by Lewis Hamilton in the Sprint race in Shanghai are the highest results that Ferrari has achieved in the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship. The Italian team is ranked fourth in the constructors' standings behind McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull. 1 PODIUM McLaren's tears, who nevertheless finished on the podium at Imola, with Norris in second place and Piastre in third. Piastre now leads the standings with 146 points, Norris is second with 133 points, while Verstappen follows in third place with 124 points, giving a nice three-way challenge. While the Red Bull is not quite up to the level of McLaren, in the hands of a wizard like the Dutch driver it looks like a car capable of causing damage to the British rivals, especially on tracks with certain characteristics. “Imola has a lot of high-speed corners and I think our car likes them. I also think we have made a step forward with the set-up, which has helped,” says Verstappen.
SURPRISED — In some ways, even Max Verstappen himself was surprised: “I was happy to be leading, but I wasn’t entirely sure how fast we were, because I was leading in Miami, but we didn’t have a great race pace there. So I tried to follow my pace a little bit. I think the car was a little more enjoyable to drive, more controllable even in the long run, and that helped me manage the tires better, maybe more than usual. So, yes, overall, it was a bit of a surprising performance, but I’m definitely very happy with what we showed. I just hope we can show a performance like this more often.”
TOWARDS MONACO — There is no rest for Formula 1, as this weekend the World Championship will be transferred to Monte Carlo. What is expected to happen in the Principality? Here is what the Red Bull driver says: "Monaco is definitely very, very different. So we will see how we will do there. Last year was very difficult for us. I don't expect it to be much easier this time, because it is obviously a low-speed track. But we will see. It is just one race on the calendar, where you try to give your best. After that there are still many races, but it is clear that when we go to tracks with high-speed corners, we are more competitive," concludes the 27-year-old Dutchman, the reigning F1 champion.
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