Max Verstappen is facing, by his own admittance, a “tough” battle at the head of the F1 field against his opponents, but the Dutchman admits that defending his turf has led to “exciting times” for himself and his Red Bull team.
Thanks to a string of five wins in the first seven races of the season, Verstappen took a dominant lead in the 2024 championship.
But despite a couple of additional triumphs in Canada and Spain, the three-time world champion has seen his gains dwindle over the summer on the back of McLaren and Mercedes’ momentum, while Red Bull is also struggling to protect its lead in the Constructors’ standings, with Sergio Perez contributing little to his team’s tally.
After two years of crushing supremacy, Verstappen acknowledged the fierce competition and the constant push required to stay on top.
“It's tough, I'm not gonna lie," he admitted, quoted by Formula.hu.
"Of course, I always try to give my very best. I try to optimise every weekend, because if I have a good car, it makes my life also a little bit easier, and probably also makes the team's life easier.
"But that's not how it goes at the moment, so we have to really fight for every position at the top, but that's okay.”
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While emphasizing the need for continuous improvement to regain momentum, Verstappen sees a silver lining in Red Bull’s current challenge, viewing it as a way to keep everyone motivated and the competition exciting.
"It's a nice thing in a way, it keeps everyone on their toes,” he added.
“We just need to try and improve a bit more, try to find that momentum again, of being really competitive. And yeah, it's exciting times, I would say."
While taking stock of his campaign year-to-date, Verstappen acknowledged the unlikelihood of replicating the commanding success he enjoyed in 2023.
"I really enjoyed last year, but I also knew that we would never have another season like that," he said.
"It's very unrealistic that you have such a competitive year again, so, I was always prepared for these kind of things. Of course, I would have hoped for a little bit more of an advantage, but that's how it goes."
Verstappen is nonetheless enjoying the challenge and relishing the battles with drivers he's known since their early racing days.
"Now we are fighting with a lot more drivers, but you always know every driver has a particular way of driving. That's the same in I think every sport, right," commented the 26-year-old.
"Not every person is the same in how they handle [different situations] but that's fine.
“I grew up with a lot of the drivers, so it's quite fun to be battling with people that are your age and you already know from go-karting times as well."
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