Max Verstappen admitted after Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix that he had endured a scary moment in Spa's daunting Raidillon, nearly losing it in the fast uphill sweep during a brief spell of rain.
After starting sixth, Verstappen patiently made his way to the front , assuming the race's lead on lap 13, never to been seen again by his rivals.
But rain clouds moved in mid-way through the race and traveled from one part of the circuit to the other, dampening the tarmac at the Eau Rouge/Raidillon complex which led to a hair-raising moment for the Red Bull charger.
"The rain was just moving around on the track," Verstappen explained. "Sometimes it was increasing in other places from lap to lap.
"I just got up there and it probably just rained a bit harder when I was on the other side of the track in Eau Rouge, and I got there and it just caught me out. It was a bit more slippery than I thought it would be.
"It happened quickly. Trying to correct it, sometimes of course it works, sometimes it doesn’t. And at that speed as well, you have quite a bit of downforce on the car that helps. But it was not great.
"We did have to save a bit but it’s always a combination of things throughout the race when you’re saving."
Verstappen felt grateful for the changes that were completed last year at the controversial corner, where an additional run-off area was added.
"That’s probably not the best place to go sideways but luckily nothing happened," the championship leader added.
"Of course, also with the changes through there, you have a little bit more run-off. But it’s still not a nice corner to have a moment."
Verstappen delivered another dominant win for Red Bull in a relatively trouble-free race, the Dutchman taking a cautious approach to the start and to the traditional risky melee at La Source.
©RedBull
Verstappen concluded his afternoon with a comfortable 22-second lead over his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, and advantage partially built during his second stint on the medium tyre.
"I could feel that the car was in a much better window and I could go a lot faster," he said.
"So from there onwards, that was really where it started to come alive and really enjoyable to drive once I got in the lead. Also, I could really look after the tyres well.
"But then of course, the rain started to come down so you had to slow down quite a bit in some places.
"But once that cleared, we went back to a soft tyre set and again the car was well-balanced, and it shows that once you are not in traffic how much better you can be on tyres. So, it was a great race."
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