Jos Verstappen has defended his son Max's team radio anger during the Spanish Grand Prix, as the 24-year-old battled intermittent Drag Reduction System issues. The Red Bull driver was unable to use his DRS for much of the race, leaving him stuck behind the Mercedes of George Russell. As the drama unfolded, Verstappen took to the team radio to fume: "Where's the f*****g DRS? Man, we can't even make our DRS work, man, f*****g unbelievable!" This anger was followed by a frustrated Verstappen adopting a more aggressive driving style, his father has claimed, which helped him to secure a memorable victory that has moved him to the top of F1's standings.
Jos claims Verstappen anger has "brought him a lot"
Verstappen's frustrations were obvious as the race win showed signs of slipping away from him, despite a retirement for Charles Leclerc. Nevertheless, his pace after pitting for new Soft tyres enabled him to storm to victory. "It was extremely hot," began Jos, speaking to Verstappen.com . "That makes it difficult for a driver to manage his tyres, and then Max had problems with the DRS system that didn't work. "You could clearly hear the frustration in his voice. And I could also see it in the way he drove. Then he drives a bit more aggressively, he wants more. That style of driving has brought him a lot in the past."
Red Bull praised; Verstappen made a mistake
Red Bull were also deserving of praise, says Jos, for their speed of thought to switch Verstappen onto a strategy that allowed him to push his RB18 to the limit, without the need for DRS. But his struggles also showed the difficulty of overtaking in F1 without the use of DRS, amid aspirations to one day remove the passing aid altogether. "Max also made a mistake and ended up in the gravel, and then got stuck behind George Russell," Jos continued. "Then he wants to pass as quickly as possible, but once again we saw how it is impossible to overtake in Formula 1 without DRS. "I have to say that I think Red Bull solved it insanely well. They changed the strategy. The decision to put Max on the softest tyre for the second time - in the third stint - gave him the chance to push. That way he grabbed his lead."
Jos: There is nothing wrong with angry Max
But Verstappen's anger is part of the reason why he and Red Bull have shared so much success over recent years, says Jos, who witnessed his son secure a 24th career victory in Barcelona. That puts Verstappen above both Nico Rosberg and Nelson Piquet on the all-time winners' list and positions him to overtake Juan Manual Fangio with his next P1 finish. "I could understand his frustration at the start of the race," added Jos. "If things don't go his way because of a problem, he's the kind of guy who expresses his dissatisfaction. There is nothing wrong with that, as far as I am concerned. "He asks the utmost from the team, but that goes both ways. That's why they are so successful together."
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