Verstappen made up most of the ground in the opening lap of Sunday's race " passing a remarkable nine cars " and earned an unlikely spot on the podium with a gutsy third-place finish. "That was a very special race," the 19-year-old Dutch driver said afterward, a huge grin plastered on his face. Since then, Verstappen has had seven podium finishes and established himself as a future star of the sport, eclipsing at times his more experienced teammate, Daniel Ricciardo. Then, during a wild opening lap on a slick track, he found enough holes to vault all the way up to seventh. Even though Red Bull is still off the pace of the Mercedes and Ferrari cars, Verstappen believes his team could contend for victories again soon.

Source: New Zealand Herald April 09, 2017 12:11 UTC