Max Verstappen secured third place at the Italian Grand Prix after a demanding race at Monza, with the Red Bull driver acknowledging that his car lacked the pace required to challenge his rivals for the higher positions.The Dutchman faced a difficult battle for much of the race, with energy deployment proving to be a particular weakness compared with his competitors. Despite those limitations, Verstappen managed to stay in contention and ultimately secured another podium finish.His Red Bull teammate Liam Lawson had a far more challenging afternoon. The New Zealander suffered front-wing damage during a battle with Nico Hulkenberg, which compromised his race and left him down in 14th at the chequered flag.Speaking after the race, Verstappen admitted that Red Bull lacked straight-line performance but said he was satisfied to finish on the podium after losing touch with the fight ahead.
“Some of the battles were quite interesting. Compared with our rivals, we had some significant issues with energy deployment from Turn 2 through Turn 4, so I often had to attack around the outside.Overall, the car was lacking top speed today, so I was simply trying to maintain my position, but they were slightly faster. For a while, I tried to remain within attacking range, but at some point I lost that opportunity and decided to simply run my own race.I am happy with third place and with being on the podium.”
