Max Verstappen Reflects on Penalty and Portimao GT Race Outcome

Max Verstappen acknowledged that the drive-through penalty received during the GT World Challenge Europe race at Portimao was "deserved," ultimately hindering his team's bid for victory. Starting from 15th on the grid, the #3 Mercedes, driven initially by Ben Barnicoat, made significant strides up to seventh place. Chris Lulham then took over, continuing the upward trajectory until a bold move at Turn 8 led to contact with Luca Stolz's Mercedes, prompting the stewards to issue the penalty.

The penalty was served just before Verstappen entered the fray, finding himself in 24th place with 45 minutes of racing left. Despite the odds, he charged through the field to secure a ninth-place finish. Verstappen, taking a break from a hectic Formula 1 schedule after recent victories in Malaysia and Singapore, found the Portimao outing both challenging and enjoyable.

Reflecting on the weekend, Verstappen noted a misstep in the car's qualifying setup, which caused performance issues, but he was pleased with the car's race pace after adjustments. "Ben had a really great first stint, staying out of the carnage at the start and driving us to the front," he commented. "Chris also started strong, but a little bit of an opportunistic move led to a deserved drive-through penalty."

Despite the penalty, Verstappen relished the challenge of recovering from 24th to ninth, describing the race as "hectic with a lot of chaos." He concluded that, while not the desired result, the weekend was valuable for the lessons learned.

Verstappen will return to the Formula 1 circuit next week for the United States Grand Prix in Austin.