Overtake king to the Max
Red Bull's teenage driver Verstappen impresses Hamilton with podium finish from 16th grid position
Max Verstappen made certain of leaving a lasting impression on Lewis Hamilton by putting in a storming drive to go from near the back of the grid to the podium in Sunday's Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix.
The triple world champion and the teenage Red Bull driver engaged in some light-hearted banter on the podium, with Hamilton, while summing up the race, hesitating mid-sentence and seemingly forgetting Verstappen's name before calling him "this young guy here".
"You always call me 'this guy'," responded a smiling Verstappen, who was sharing the podium with Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel for the first time.
"I do? Okay, this dude, this dude," Hamilton said, putting his arm around the 19-year-old Dutchman's shoulder.
Verstappen started Sunday's race in 16th position after a misfiring engine hobbled him in qualifying.
He made rapid progress up the field, overtaking nine cars in the damp and treacherous conditions on the first lap alone.
FROM 16TH TO 3RD
He ran as high as second behind Hamilton and fended off late-race pressure from teammate Daniel Ricciardo to finish third and give Red Bull their 100th podium place.
Asked if passing all those cars on the opening lap felt like playing a video game, Verstappen said: "More or less... I gained one or two positions and then."
"Trying to go round the outside in turn one, I got another car," he added later, taking journalists through his first-lap heroics that won him the fans' vote for Driver of the Day.
"Then inside turn two, another car, outside turn three... Always trying to go around the outside or inside and it worked. Yeah, overtaking nine cars is quite a lot on one lap."
Verstappen, son of former racer Jos, has taken Formula 1 by storm since he made his debut two years ago.
His racecraft and uncompromising approach to overtaking have also won him a legion of fans. He has, however, also ruffled some feathers, clashing most notably with Ferrari drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Vettel.
Hamilton, though, has been among his staunchest supporters.
"I quite like him up here next to us," said the Briton.
"He's been a real breath of fresh air for everyone." - REUTERS
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now