Max Verstappen says he cannot rely on rain to help him this weekend because McLaren have been stronger in wet conditions this year.
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Verstappen earned a crucial victory in last year’s rain-affected Brazilian Grand Prix, a result that brought him close to a fourth world championship. With more wet weather forecast for this weekend, a repeat of that performance would help him close the gap to the championship-leading McLaren drivers.
But Verstappen believes Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will have the upper hand if the sessions are run in the rain.
“In the rain it’s always very risky,” Verstappen told the official Formula 1 channel. “It can work for you, it can work against you.
“Also this season I think in the wet McLaren has been very, very strong to control the overheating, for example, on the intermediate tyres. So it’s not a given that if it rains that suddenly we will be the ones to beat.”
McLaren have won every rain-affected race so far this season. Norris narrowly beat Verstappen in Melbourne after the Red Bull driver’s first set of tyres faded. Norris also took victory in the rain-hit Miami sprint, aided in part by a Safety Car, while Verstappen lost time following a pitlane collision.
At Silverstone McLaren finished first and second in wet conditions after Verstappen spun during a Safety Car restart. The team also claimed the top two spots in the wet Belgian Grand Prix, with Piastri leading and Verstappen finishing fourth behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
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Verstappen arrives in Brazil having reduced his championship deficit from 104 points to 36 over five rounds. With four races remaining, he acknowledges it will be tough to overtake the McLaren drivers.
“We’ll just try to do everything we can ’til the end,” he said. “It’s 36 points, it’s still a decent gap.
“I think over the last few rounds, we have done a very good job as a team. But of course, if we want to close that down further, we need to be ahead constantly now. And that will be, I think, a big challenge.”
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