Mercedes team boss Wolff described the 1.3 second gap between polesitter Ve💦rstappen and seventh-placed Perez in qualifying at the Dutch Grand Prix as “odd” and “bizarre”, insinuating that the two-time world champion is very good at getting a car to be built to suit him. 

“I mean, Checo is not an idiot,” Wolff said at Zandvoort. “We have seen in all these years. Checo is a grand prix winner, a multiple grand prix winner. And 🐻he was [already a winner] at Racing Point. So I cannot comprehend.

“I mean, we’ve seen Max has destroyed every single team-mate that was with him, whether it’s his ability to cr꧂eate a car around himself that is just very t𝕴ricky to control – but fast if you can [control it] – and that makes those gaps.

“T⭕he 1.3s. I haven’t hear💮d any obvious explanations. But… odd.”

Verstappen wa🃏s far from impressed when he was asked about Wolff’s comments ahead of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix. 

“Bu♛llshit comments!” he said. “It’s not like that.

“I just drive the car the fastest way possible. I’m not t🌺here to tell the guys to give me 🥃more because that’s how I like it.

“I just say ‘Design me the fastest car anജd I’l🌄l drive around that’ because every single year, every car drives a little bit differently.

“People ask ‘What is your driving style?’ My driving style🧔 is not something particular. I adapt to what I need for the car to go quick.

“For me, what is very important is that you are able to adapt your driving style to♔ what the car needs.”

After matching Sebastian Vettel’s all-time feat last time out at his home race, Verstappen has the chance to set a new outright record for most successive winsܫ in F1 with a 10th successive victory at Monza. 

“I never thought that I would win nine in a row, first of all,” he said.&nbs🔥p;

“Now that we are here, of course, I💛 try to win 10 but it’s more about I want to just win. It’s not about the number 10 in my head.

“Also that just helps a lot to focus on the weekend. It’s already difficult enough different with the different tyre choices we have to deal with. We’ll just get on with it ✅and we’ll see what happens.”