Formula 1
Horner concedes Mercedes were stronger
Red Bull boss Christian Horner says Mercedes simply had a quicker car in Hungary after Lewis Hamilton won the race.
Verstappen qualified on pole position at Hungary, with the Mercedes duo of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton in close proximity.
After Bottas' race was ruined by an early collision, Verstappen led for much of the contest, prompting Mercedes to switch to a two-stop strategy.
It duly worked as Hamilton was able to overhaul Verstappen's 20-second advantage and overtake the Dutchman with three laps remaining, to prevent his third victory in four races.
After the race, Horner conceded that Red Bull were hamstrung by the tactics of Mercedes and they were simply too fast on the day.
"We had track position but I think Mercedes just had a quicker car in the race today, to just follow within a second...that was mighty impressive," Horner told Sky Sports.
"It gave them all the options with the free stop. To have pitted Max from the lead with him a second behind, it wouldn't have been a sensible call from us. Max got everything out of the car as he could.
"By the end of the second sector, Lewis would have been ahead, so it didn't make any sense to concede track position. The only chance was to try to hang it out.
"To have pitted from the lead from the position we were in would have been an impossible call."
Dan McCarthy is a reporter who is very knowledgeable about football at all levels, and a keen Leeds United fan. He also follows darts, snooker, motorsport, and rugby league.
