Verstappen claimed his eighth win of the season in Hungary last weekend to extend his advantage over Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the Drivers’ Championship to 80 points.
This came despite an engine problem during qualifying which forced Verstappen to start the race from 10th on the grid, and a spin during the race which cost him some places.
But Verstappen warned that even with such a healthy points buffer, Red Bull must remain vigilant to avoid any mistakes that could cost them ground in the battle against Leclerc and Ferrari.
“Of course it’s a nice lead,” Verstappen said after the race in Hungary.
“But we can’t have too many days like we had [on Saturday]. And even [in the race] we had a few minor issues with the clutch and upshifts, which wasn’t fun to drive.
“Overall, of course, it’s good, but we just keep working, keep trying to improve things.”
Reliability proved to be Red Bull’s Achilles’ heel at the start of the season as Verstappen failed to finish two of the first three races, allowing Leclerc to take a 46-point lead over the Dutchman after Australia.
The tables quickly turned at the front as Ferrari paid the price for reliability issues and missteps in strategy, leaving Red Bull 97 points clear in the constructors’ standings heading into the summer break.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
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Red Bull team principal Christian Horner echoed Verstappen’s warning against complacency despite admitting the points tables “look healthy” at the moment.
“It’s a great way to end summer vacation, but [there is] still a lot of races to do,” said Horner.
“Ferrari are fast, Mercedes are coming back into the game. There is still a long way to go in this championship, plus a sprint race.
“So we don’t take anything for granted. There’s still a lot of shopping to do. And they are very different places.
Verstappen’s eight wins so far this year put Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher’s shared record of 13 wins in a single season within reach of the reigning world champion with nine races remaining.
But Verstappen gave little thought to his chances of breaking the record when it was offered to him after their win over Hungary.
“I don’t know, of course we will try to win as much as possible in the races we have left,” said Verstappen.
“But of course, more importantly, we have to keep the championship lead. This is, of course, what we must try to secure.
