Max Verstappen is sailing on smooth seas after his seventh victory in the 2022 Formula 1 season won this Sunday (24) at Paul Ricard. The victory gave the reigning world champion an even more open path to his quest for the championship, as he opened a 63-point lead over second-placed Charles Leclerc.

However, none of this takes away the focus or allows the Dutchman from Red Bull to lose the reins of the championship. Max played down the lead to Leclerc in the championship and praised the performance of his rival, who was leading the race and maintaining a safe distance until he spun alone and threw away what looked like a consistent victory on the French circuit.

"It's very important to always score points, as we did in Austria on a bad weekend. The lead is great, but a bit bigger than it should have been, given the performance of the cars in the race," Verstappen said.

Max Verstappen venceu pela sétima vez na temporada 2022 da F1 (Foto: Red Bull Content Pool) — Max Verstappen won for the seventh time in the 2022 F1 season (Photo: Red Bull Content Pool)

The championship leader admitted that Charles had been faster faster in the first third of the race and that it would be very difficult to follow him, before the incident. "I could quickly see that the car was well balanced, even at the back. We were very competitive, even with the impression that Leclerc was managing his advantage."

In Verstappen's wake, Red Bull boss Christian Horner praised all the efforts made by the team to conform to the new season regulations. "Ferrari is very competitive this year, Mercedes has been gaining ground in recent races. But if you take into account that we were probably the last to make the full transition for this year, our work has been phenomenal."

Horner also said that Verstappen's victory was because he was the first one into the pits during the French GP. In addition, the strategy of making only one pit-stop was always on the radar and was consolidated when they realized that tire degradation was below the forecast.

"We were, yes, inclined to make two stops, but as the race unfolded, we made a right move, and it was only up to the mechanics to make the stop right. If Leclerc hadn't spun, Max would have had an advantage thanks to our speed on the straight, especially in sector two," he added.

Horner elogiou trabalho da Red Bull para se adequar às novas regras da temporada (Foto: Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /Red Bull Content Pool) — Horner praised Red Bull's work to adapt to the new rules of the season (Photo: Mark Thompson/Getty Images)/Red Bull Content Pool)

Verstappen leads the championship with 233 points, compared to Leclerc's 170. In the Constructors' World Championship, Red Bull's advantage over Ferrari is 82 points, and it could be bigger if it weren't for Sergio Pérez's wobble in missing the podium to George Russell.

Formula 1 returns next weekend, July 29-31, at the Hungaroring, with the Hungarian Grand Prix, which closes the first part of the championship.