When he took pole position in the pouring rain, Max Verstappen was quick to explain that it had been his father who would stand on the wet track during his early days of karting and point him to the correct driving lines.
So when Verstappen won the Canadian Grand Prix on Father's Day — a 41st victory that tied the Dutchman for fifth on the all-time Formula One wins list with the late Ayrton Senna and gave Red Bull their 100th win — he was quick to salute the man who had molded him into the two-time reigning world champion.
The 25-year-old reminisced of the days he and Jos Verstappen traveled by van throughout Europe to his karting races, his father hoping to raise a winner. Jos made 107 F1 starts and was once a teammate of Michael Schumacher.
“Without him I would not sit here today,” Verstappen said of his father. “He has taught me and prepared me for so much, from a very young age. He had this goal, he had this goal set for me to first of all be better than him. And then try to get to Formula One, you know?
“We still call every day. I mean right before the race, I was still talking to him about what we were going to do with that strategy. He likes to know. Even when he's not here. It's just nice to have that kind of relationship with your dad.”
The Dutchman's repeat win in Montreal extended his season-long dominance.
Verstappen won for the sixth time this season — the fourth in a row — and Red Bull remained a perfect eight for eight this year. Going level with Senna was simply a byproduct of his success.
“I hate to compare different generations," Verstappen said, deflecting. “From my side, the only thing I can say is when I was a little kid driving and karting, I was dreaming about being a Formula One driver. I never imagined [I’d] win 41.
“And of course I'm proud of that. But of course I hope it's not stopping here. I hope that we can keep on winning races."
Lewis Hamilton holds the all-time record with 103 wins, but the seven-time champion said in Canada he expected Verstappen to surpass the mark eventually. Verstappen was quick to note that as Red Bull celebrated its 100th win, he alone was responsible for 41 victories.
“We'll talk about maybe a new contract because of that,” he said with a laugh.
Red Bull principal Christian Horner radioed his gratitude when Verstappen crossed the finish line.
“A century for the team,” Horner told Verstappen. “Fantastic. And thank you for producing that race victory.”
Hamilton and the rest of the field had hoped to give Verstappen a challenge at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, where rain throughout the weekend scrambled the competition and created optimism that Red Bull legitimately would be challenged.
Another Canadian Grand Prix win for Max Verstappen and 100 race wins for Red Bull! 👏 pic.twitter.com/VFM76im7ib
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 18, 2023
Fernando Alonso thought he had a shot, and it was improved when Nico Hulkenberg was given a qualifying penalty that moved Alonso to the front row next to Verstappen for the start.
But Hamilton, starting alongside Mercedes teammate George Russell on the second row, got a surprise jump on Alonso and snagged second place at the start. Verstappen still easily pulled away from both, and on the first dry day of the weekend in Montreal, rolled to another easy win.
The one bright spot for everyone chasing Verstappen was that his margin of victory over Alonso was only 9.5 seconds.
Only? Yes. It was the closest race of the season because Verstappen has been so dominant that he typically wins by 20-plus seconds each race. In fact, Alonso himself noted following Saturday qualifying that the only way to even pressure Verstappen was to be “two seconds behind them, not 20 seconds behind them”.
"Probably not our best race, but still to win by nine seconds, I think shows that we have a great car," Verstappen said of the margin of victory.
It wasn't an overwhelming Red Bull rout; Sergio Perez, who had hoped to “reset” his season in Canada, was a distant sixth. Perez has been so underwhelming of late that Alonso answered a simple “yes” when asked if he can pass Perez in the championship standings.
So proud to be part of this team, 100 Race Wins 🏆 #F1 #CanadianGP pic.twitter.com/5UCL2BsFg3
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) June 18, 2023
Perez is second in the standings with just a nine-point lead over Alonso. Verstappen leads his Red Bull teammate by 69 points.
Hamilton finished third for his second consecutive podium and was followed by Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. Alex Albon of Williams was seventh and followed by Esteban Ocon of Alpine.
Lando Norris of McLaren, who earlier in the race received a five-second penalty for unsportsmanlike behavior, waged a frantic last-lap battle that thrilled the fans who had sat through an otherwise predictable Verstappen parade. Norris complained on his radio that the rear wing on the Alpine was flapping and a danger to him as the trailing car.
Norris chased Ocon for the final lap and the two had a wheel-to-wheel battle into the final chicane, where Norris had to bail out in a game of chicken. Norris dropped from ninth to 13th.
Lance Stroll was ninth for Aston Martin, a disappointment for the only Canadian in the field.
