"This was the first time I felt like actually I could fight for the win," declares Max Verstappen following Spielberg podium.

Despite the best efforts of the Sky team to inject as much drama as possible into the race, including warning that there was rain around 10 kms from the circuit - it arrived shortly after the race ended - it was clear that George Russell had things in hand, and the only possible change to the order was a last gasp attack from Kimi Antonelli on Max Verstappen to make it a Mercedes 1-2.

Verstappen crossed the line in second, his best result since Canada, where he benefitted from the retirement of Russell and Lando Norris.

At a time the Dutchman continues to be linked with rival teams, finishing second on the road, on merit, was vital, and much appreciated by the four-time world champion.

"What was satisfying is that this was the first time I felt like actually I could fight for the win," he told reporters post-race.

Starting fifth on the grid, he was up to third by the second lap, making use of Kimi Antonelli's off-track antics to pass Charles Leclerc also. There followed a return to the good old days of 2021 as he fought wheel-to-wheel with Lewis Hamilton.

Once he had dispatched the seven-time world champion, Verstappen set about hauling in race leader George Russell, but it was not to be.

"In the first half of the race we were more competitive," he explained, "because, for whatever reason, in the second half something felt off on the rear of the car.

"Everything was just extremely difficult from bumps, kerbs, traction," he continued, "it was just completely gone.

"That's a bit of a shame, but to be that close to a win I think is a great effort from the team," he grinned. "They have worked really hard to get these upgrades on the car here and this is the first time in the race where I felt really competitive and I could push a bit more."

As ever, strategy played a part, Verstappen not agreeing the decision to extend his run before his final pit stop.

"I think I had the degradation advantage over George," he said, "but I also knew it was going to be a very long stint to the end. I personally felt that during the laps I stayed out I probably lost a little bit too much compared to what I gained back from those extra laps on new tyres.

"But it's easy to say now," he admitted. "We still had a very good race to be honest. It's been a pretty long road to be here in the top three and have a real shot at it. That is already positive."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by JamesD, 14 minutes ago

"Crofty stated it was an epic race - I must have been watching something else ! The F3 & F2 sprint and feature races had much more of what I call 'racing.' In fact F3 & F2 in terms of race quality are currently destroying F1; it really pains me to say that but that's what I see."

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2. Posted by Kkiirmki, 26 minutes ago

"Yes, Sky TVs Karun Chandhok's very generous, "Brilliant, brilliant Grand Prix", was a little way off."

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