“It’s almost un-human” - Christian Horner lauds “on another planet” Max Verstappen

Christian Horner has described Max Verstappen as “almost un-human” following his latest F1 victory at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Verstappen stormed to victory in the China sprint race before following it up with a grand prix triumph.

It’s Verstappen’s first-ever victory at the Shanghai International Circuit - the 26th different circuit Verstappen has been victorious at.

Reflecting on Verstappen’s performance, Horner told Sky Sports F1: “He has been on fantastic form all weekend.

“The team has been outstanding - to win the sprint, get pole position, the front row lockout for the race, then P1 and P3 in the race. I felt we were unlucky with the Safety Car. That’s the way it goes.

“Max is on another planet. His form is fantastic. It varies from circuit to circuit but he’s totally at one with the machine. He has unbelievable feel and empathy with the car, the feel, the conditions.

“He has confidence in himself. He has ability to understand the tyres, what they need, when they need to be pushed and saved. He has an incredible racing brain. It’s almost un-human what he’s capable of. It’s a pleasure to work with. He’s writing history.”

Sergio Perez secured his fourth podium of the year, securing third.

Perez lost out on second after losing track position during the Safety Car phase, caused by Valtteri Bottas’ stricken Sauber.

Horner was still pleased with Perez’s “strong weekend”.

“We went into the race on a reasonably aggressive two-stop,” he added. “The Safety Car timing couldn’t have been worse for us, particularly for Checo. We had to stop again and converge on strategy with a Ferrari and a McLaren, and that dropped Checo’s track position.

“It took him time to get past Charles which took a bit out of his tyres. By the time he cleared Charles, his tyres weren’t in the best shape to hunt down Lando. Another strong weekend by Perez to get a double-podium.”