After the early retirements this season that left him playing catch-up before to his commanding Formula 1 title win, Max Verstappen felt that he "could not afford any mistakes."
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Max Verstappen easily won his second F1 world championship in 2022, breaking records with 15 victories in a single campaign and a new high points total of 454, putting him 146 points ahead of Charles Leclerc, a Ferrari opponent, who finished in second position. Verstappen had worried his championship chances were in jeopardy as early as the fourth race in Imola, but his dominance allowed him to secure the title with four races remaining. Following his forced retirements in Bahrain and Australia due to a fuel pump issue, he dropped 46 points – or nearly two race victories – behind Leclerc in the standings.
Verstappen mentioned the value of scoring at every race when asked by reporters to name one area where he truly improved this season. He also recalled feeling as though he could do no wrong after the early DNFs. Verstappen remarked before accepting the F1 world championship trophy at the FIA award giving in Bologna last week, “You know when you have to battle for a title, you need to win points practically every race as much as you can.” “As a result, it was very difficult to have these DNFs at the beginning of the year. From that point forward, I was aware that I could no longer afford to make any mistakes in case we retired for any reason. Every single weekend, you strive to be as precise and flawless as you possibly can. I make an effort to hold myself to that standard each time I get in the car.
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Verstappen’s 2022 title victory was in stark contrast to his 2021 debut triumph, which came at the end of a gruelling year-long battle with Lewis Hamilton that lasted to the very last lap of the season. Verstappen’s main competition throughout the first half of the season came from Leclerc and Ferrari, leaving Hamilton and Mercedes out of the title race this year. Verstappen was able to win nine out of the final 11 races after Red Bull gained ground in the development standings during the summer break.
Following the “heavyweight duel” versus Hamilton last year, Red Bull team president Christian Horner believed Verstappen had “taken another step ahead as a driver” through 2022. He has driven this year with such maturity and calmness, and he has produced some tremendous victories under enormous pressure, according to Horner. “It’s only when you look back over the season, and we’ve started to do that in the last week, that you realise there were some monumental moments in races like Saudi, Miami, or Montreal. “At the start of the year, we didn’t have the fastest car. He drove with incredible technique and speed, kept us very much in the race, and just kept pushing. “He took the chance with both hands when it presented itself.”
