Verstappen ‘invaluable’ after all-time great F1 drive – Horner

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has revealed that Max Verstappen is “invaluable” after winning the São Paulo Grand Prix.

Verstappen recovered from 17th on the grid to win in Interlagos by over 19 seconds, whilst title rival Lando Norris finished in a disappointing sixth after starting on pole. 

The Dutchman mastered the wet conditions and made up six places on the opening lap alone, before picking off those ahead with ease. 

It marked his first victory since the Spanish Grand Prix and, therefore, ended his 10-race winless streak.

When asked by Sky Sports F1 how much Verstappen is worth, Horner said: “Max is invaluable. It’s impossible to put a number on that. That was a champion’s drive. 

“There’s some great drivers out there, but to stand out and shine like that today, that marks him out, I think, with some of the greats now. 

“The way he’s driven, and even when we’ve had a difficult car this year, he’s never given up. He’s gone about collecting the points, he’s always trying to get maximum out of the car.”

‘Big day’ in title fight

The result moves the reigning world champion a comfortable 62 points clear of the McLaren driver, meaning a fourth consecutive crown can be claimed in Las Vegas. 

Verstappen, crucially, did not pit before a red flag was waved on lap 33 after Franco Colapinto crashed heavily. 

Norris, on the other hand, did pit for fresh intermediate tyres, in what was a strategic mistake by McLaren. 

Horner recognises that Verstappen’s victory is significant in the drivers’ title fight and never expected the 27-year-old to claim a famous win.

“It’s a big day for the drivers championship. I never expected to win that, I thought if we could get somewhere near the podium would be an amazing result. 

“So for him to have gone out there and won that race, it was an outstanding drive. Absolutely, he was patient, he attacked when he needed to, and his restart, he came from so far back. 

“Truly, an outstanding drive.”