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Max Verstappen won the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday and extended his lead in the Formula One drivers’ standings.
Verstappen started second behind pole-sitter Lando Norris, but the three-time world champion passed the McLaren driver on the first lap, then passed George Russell on lap three with a 66 and never fell behind again.
Norris tried to overtake him near the finish line, but Verstappen picked up the pace and crossed the finish line first, leaving Norris in second place, followed closely by Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes.
Verstappen said the decision to pass Norris and Russell at the start was crucial in allowing him to extend his lead and keep Norris and Russell behind. “I think the difference in the race was the start,” said Verstappen. “I took the lead and kept protecting. After that we just made a defensive run.”
Verstappen has won seven of 10 races this season and claimed his third straight victory at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Montmelo.
The Dutchman has 219 points, with Norris moving into second place with 150 points ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who is now third with 148 points after finishing fifth on Sunday.
English
Max Verstappen sealed victory at the Spanish Grand Prix as he held off a challenge from pole-sitter Lando Norris to take his seventh win of the season. The Red Bull driver took the lead for the first time on lap three after George Russell, in his Mercedes, made the most of his strong start from fourth on the grid to take an early lead when the lights went out.
Verstappen appeared to be squeezed by Norris at the start, which did not please Verstappen, and the three-time world champion steadied himself after overtaking the McLaren driver before passing Russell on the outside of Turn 1 to take the lead.
Norris, who started from pole position, boasted yesterday that he had run a “perfect lap” in qualifying, but he fell behind Russell in the crucial early stages of the race, which cost him a lot of time in the final battle for the lead.
The lead changed hands several times as the drivers pitted, with Verstappen continuing to control the race and holding the lead towards the end of the race, with the Red Bull driver getting a new set of soft tyres for his final stages of the Grand Prix.
America Daily/Formula One
Photo: Formula One
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