{"id":35871,"date":"2022-08-25T18:09:05","date_gmt":"2022-08-25T18:09:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/red-bull-drivers-ready-for-belgium-as-threat-of-rain-does-little-to-defuse-excitement"},"modified":"2022-08-25T18:13:50","modified_gmt":"2022-08-25T18:13:50","slug":"red-bull-drivers-ready-for-belgium-as-threat-of-rain-does-little-to-defuse-excitement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/red-bull-drivers-ready-for-belgium-as-threat-of-rain-does-little-to-defuse-excitement","title":{"rendered":"Red Bull drivers ready for Belgium as threat of rain does little to defuse excitement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he was feeling well-rested and ready to race after the Formula 1 summer break, ahead of the upcoming weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps track.<\/p>\n

Verstappen currently enjoys an 80 points lead over second-placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc with nine races remaining in the F1 season.<\/p>\n

The Dutch driver was victorious at the 2021 rain-drenched Belgian race and will be hoping to claim another win this weekend.<\/p>\n

Ready to go<\/p>\n

In the Red Bull pre-race preview of the weekend’s racing, Verstappen said: “I’m feeling ready to race again after a good break. I definitely got the itch to get back to it. It will be a busy triple header, but it will be okay to manage as we’ve all had a rest. The upgrades to the track have made it a little more ‘old school’ with the gravel traps, which I think is a good idea.<\/p>\n

“It’s my favourite track, so I’m looking forward to racing there this weekend. It looks like there might be rain around, which will make it trickier, but luckily as a team, we like a challenge.”<\/p>\n

Teammate Sergio Perez, who trails Verstappen by 85 points in the standings, is only five points away from challenging Leclerc for his second place in the drivers’ standings.<\/p>\n

“I am massively looking forward to being back in the RB18 and getting out on track again,” said Perez. It has been a good break, and I have really recharged for the second half of the season, and I am ready for it.<\/p>\n

“There are great races coming up, especially Belgium on a track that I always enjoy, and the fans are always amazing there. I cannot wait to get back to work and see my team. I think it’s nice to start after the break with a triple header, where we can really get into our rhythm.”<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he was feeling well-rested and ready to race after the Formula 1 summer break, ahead of the upcoming weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps track. Verstappen currently enjoys an 80 points lead over second-placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc with nine races remaining in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":35870,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,8,17],"tags":[274,315,1135,1138,2377,1521,2129,275],"class_list":["post-35871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-homepage-english","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-south-africa","tag-f1","tag-formula-1","tag-max-verstappen","tag-red-bull","tag-sergio-perez","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nRed Bull drivers ready for Belgium as threat of rain does little to defuse excitement - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he was feeling well-rested and ready to race after the Formula 1 summer break, ahead ...\" 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