Max Verstappen will start from the fifth position in the final race of the season. The Dutch driver had a strong qualifying round, but had to concede to the drivers from McLaren and Ferrari in the last session. The four-time world champion is now counting down the hours until he can bid farewell to his RB20. “I won’t have to touch it ever again,” he joked.
“P5 is obviously not ideal,” Max Verstappen responded in Abu Dhabi to Viaplay. He showed relative strength in the first two sessions, but in Q3, the Dutchman didn’t perform as well. He lost a lot of time during his final lap, which ultimately resulted in him finishing behind Nico Hülkenberg (P4). “It was a tough qualifying,” Verstappen explained. “The car was acting up a bit. Sometimes we manage with the set-up, but with all these bumps and kerbstones, it just becomes very difficult.”
‘Counting Down the Laps’
During his first lap in Q3, Max Verstappen immediately caused a sensation in Abu Dhabi. Not only did he record the fastest time, but he nearly crashed his car into the wall on the final turn. He had to correct the oversteering RB20 while drifting. “It might have been spectacular, but it wasn’t very fast,” he responded with a smile. “We had made some adjustments to the front wing, but after that, nothing worked anymore.
On Sunday, Max Verstappen will start, as mentioned, between Nico Hülkenberg and Pierre Gasly. Both drivers are fighting for points to secure the sixth spot in the constructors’ standings. “I have to be careful,” Verstappen joked. “I’m curious to see what will happen.”
He is primarily looking forward to his last race of the season and the vacation that follows. “I’m going to count down the laps,” he confirmed. “After that, this car can go straight to a museum – I never want to touch it again,” he concluded with a laugh.
