Max Verstappen admits to being surprised to start losing two seconds per lap during his final stint at the Mexican Grand Prix, though the Toro Rosso rookie still managed to salvage ninth place.
Lining up eighth on the grid, Verstappen enjoyed a strong opening lap to move up to sixth. The Dutchman ran as high as third before dropping back to P8 after his first stop. Having been picked off by home favourite Sergio Perez following a mistake, Verstappen looked primed to reclaim the position after pitting for fresh soft tyres under a late Safety Car.
However, despite the Force India being on 40-lap mediums, the teenager could not overhaul the Mexican and even started sliding back into the clutches of Lotus’ Romain Grosjean.
“We were quite fast on track, saving a lot of brakes and the engine, without pushing at all during the whole race until the last stint where we put on another set of soft tyres and all of sudden, I don’t know why, we lost like two seconds per lap,” said Verstappen.
“We managed to pass a Force India, we managed to undercut Perez. I was really quick at the beginning and the middle part of the race until the safety car; then after the safety car we suddenly lost two seconds of performance.”
The 18-year-old nonetheless managed to hang to P9 until the end, thus securing his fifth consecutive points finish and further cementing his 10th place in the Drivers’ standings.
REPORT: Rosberg holds off Hamilton in Mexican GP as Vettel crashes
AS IT HAPPENED: Mexican Grand Prix
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