27/08/2016
NEWS STORY
While next weekend, when the F1 circus pitches up at the legendary Monza circuit, will belong to Ferrari and, to a extent, any former driver for the Scuderia, this weekend appears to belong to young Max Verstappen.
Not only are there hordes of Dutch fans at the circuit this weekend, Verstappen, born in the Belgian town of Hasselt to Flemish mother Sophie Kumpen, can also rely on strong support from the locals.
As a result, it's fair to say that the Netherlands and Belgian flags bearing the youngster's name or image outnumber those bearing the prancing horse of Ferrari.
While this, combined with the fact that he was quickest in yesterday's all-important second practice session, might turn the heads of most, Max is refusing to get carried away.
With Lewis Hamilton starting from the back of the grid on Sunday, alongside Fernando Alonso, other than his Red Bull teammate, Verstappen's biggest threat appears to be Nico Rosberg, who was over a second slower in yesterday's second session.
However, aware that neither Mercedes driver tried the supersoft rubber in FP2, Verstappen has no intention of taking anything for granted.
"For sure they will be very competitive," he told reporters. "We will see what happens.
"We can definitely improve even more and we have to wait and see what they do," he added. "So far we have had a very good start. Tonight we will analyse a lot of things and I am sure Mercedes will come back, they are very strong, but in the end it was a very positive day.
"I don't know where they are," he admitted. "We are very close, but we have to wait and see. They will be very competitive and some others teams are very competitive so we have to wait and see."
Referring to his legions of supporters around the 4.3 mile track, he said: "The fans were cheering me on which gives you a lot of motivation and it's great to see so many on a Friday."
Check out our Saturday gallery from Spa, here.