Verstappen doesn't regret intermediate gambit

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Max Verstappen insists that he doesn't regret being one of a number of drivers to pit for intermediate tyres when showers hit the German Grand Prix.

Although several other drivers made the same call, fourth-placed Verstappen was the highest of those to pit for a wet weather compound when it started raining.

However the rain did not prove as heavy or as long-lasting as expected, and Verstappen was forced to pit again a few laps later for a set of slick ultras.

Fortunately his advantage over the rest of the field was big enough that he still finished the race in fourth.

"After such a chaotic race I think finishing fourth is a good result, and the car felt strong throughout the race," he said.

"It was a hard day for decision making due to the late changes in the weather," he explained. "I had a small slide at turn 6 when it first started to rain so I decided to pit for Intermediates.

"As soon as I came out of the pits and got to turn 6 it was dry again," he added.

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"I knew it was not going to work. It could have done, but unfortunately it didn’t continue raining enough

“Luckily it didn’t make a difference anyway," he continued. "The safety car meant it didn’t impact the result, but it was worth trying at the time.

“I tried," he shrugged. "Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. This time it didn’t.

"I just wish the race had started a little bit later,” he said, pointing to the thunderstorms and torrential rain that had started just a quarter of an hour after the end of the race.

"The heavy rain came a fraction too late in the day," he noted. "Perhaps we could have done more but instead we had to settle for dryer conditions.

"We should be in better shape to get a good result in Hungary so I’m already looking forward to next weekend."

Verstappen's team mate Daniel Ricciardo started the race from the back of the grid and he charged up to sixth place before an engine issue forced him to retire on lap 27.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.