‘That’s how it has always been’ – Max Verstappen reveals fresh details on Gianpiero Lambiase talks

Max Verstappen insists all is well between himself and Gianpiero Lambiase after clear-the-air talks at Spa, the driver saying after a short talk, they are “going for it again”.

Such was the tense exchanges between Verstappen and his race engineer Lambiase during the Hungarian Grand Prix, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner orchestrated a sit down between them and also technical boss Pierre Wache on the eve of the Belgian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen: How it should be, how it has always been

Said to be a good discussion, Wache was included in the conversation as while Verstappen’s ire was aimed at ‘GP’, a lot of it was based on the Dutchman’s feelings that Red Bull’s upgraded RB20 was “not good enough”.

He was fifth that Sunday and followed that up with a P4 at the Belgian Grand Prix where a grid penalty meant he lost pole position and started P11.

The Spa weekend was a much better one on track for Verstappen with his RB20 almost six-tenths up on his nearest challenger, Charles Leclerc, in qualifying.

Whether it was that or those Thursday’s evening talks, the radio messages between the driver and his long-time race engineer were a lot calmer.

“Everything has been resolved,” Verstappen told Viaplay. “I’m not going to talk about that.

“It’s very simple, you don’t have to talk about it for a long time, and we’re just going for it again. That’s how it should be, and that’s how it has always been, to be honest.

“A lot of things are also taken out of context.”

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Verstappen and GP, F1’s “old married couple” as Horner has previously called them, were on a better footing, the triple World Champion cannot say the same of his Red Bull F1 car.

Two years ago he won the Belgian Grand Prix from 14th on the grid while this year he could only recover to fourth.

That’s largely because Red Bull’s rivals, led by McLaren and Mercedes, have closed the gap on track. That’s meant McLaren have also closed it in the Constructors’ Championship where they’re just 42 points off the pace.

Such is the challenge Red Bull now face, Verstappen says he hopes to still win a race “here and there” in the latter part of the season.

“We have to get better, because otherwise it will be a long season, that is my conclusion. That was very clear,” he said.

“Everyone is going for it full throttle and we are going to make the best of it until the end of the season. Hopefully, it will still offer enough opportunities to win a race here and there.”

Pressed on that he insisted Red Bull’s advantage is not only completely gone and we are now also behind.

“That is very clear. Now it is up to us to try to put it right again, but that is not easy.

“Other teams around us are performing very consistently and are simply doing well. So yes, hopefully there will be more chances for us to win.

“All races were educational, some things you could have done better in hindsight, but hindsight is always easy. Every weekend is always a learning experience, but that is also typical of Formula 1.

“You have to be realistic. I have always said: there will come a time when the weather changes, and that has been going on for a few races now.”

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