Photo: Formula Motorsport Ltd
Richard Verschoor bounced back from being disqualification from sprint race victory at the Hungaroring by making the feature race podium, but it did not “feel like redemption”.
The Trident driver had already restrained himself after Saturday’s race and did not want to celebrate prematurely. And for a fourth time — the third after winning — he was stripped of a Formula 2 podium due to a technical infringement.
He was measured with his words again after finishing Sunday’s race in third, but opened up on what he had felt over the previous 24 hours and how he has changed his mindset when he steps on the podium.
“I wasn’t angry, but I was just disappointed,” he told media including Formula Scout. “It’s the third time that I got disqualified after a win. The good thing was I wasn’t really happy after the race, so the dip afterwards was not so big. But, of course, it’s another win, another trophy that you cannot bring home, another points-scoring position that you cannot bring home.
“It’s been a tough season, I have to say, but I will never give up on my team. I’m very proud of them and we will keep pushing for Spa[-Francorchamps].
“It was 0.3 millimetres that the plank was too thin. It was a mistake. Of course it’s a tough to swallow. Sometimes it’s motorsport.
“We have been improving this round compared to the last three rounds, so at least we are in the mix. Now it is up to me to be on top of my driving in Spa and try to improve qualifying.”
The disappointment of yet another victory lost to disqualification led Verschoor to skipping the feature race briefing.
“I wasn’t really angry yesterday, as I said, but I wasn’t super motivated for today, I have to admit. To be honest, as soon as you put on your helmet, you don’t care anymore. You always go. I was just fed up with everything I was going [through],” he said, referring to the misfortunes he has faced this season, including losing a potential Monaco feature race win to a mechanical failure.
“I skipped all the meetings this morning, so maybe I should do it more often,” he joked. “Yesterday I wasn’t really happy because I’ve had this experience of being super happy, being on the podium and celebrating with sponsors, with my team. You think you did a good job and in the end you have zero points and you have no trophy. So if it happens once, okay, you’re disappointed. Even twice, you’re fed up. But the third time, it just gets worse.
“I cannot wait until everything should be fine today. Then I cannot wait to speak to the team to see how we can improve. And we can never give up, but tough times are part of the job, I guess.”
The fourth-year F2 driver now sits 15th in the standings with 32 points, making it his least productive season to date.