Easier to salute masterclass Max than Mad Max

So what did Max Verstappen do in the days between Mexico and Brazil?

- David Tremayne

Take a chill pill? Nope. He made it crystal clear despite heavy criticism that he has zero intention of changing his driving style to suit those softies (this writer among them) who prefer to see artistry in a driver's skill set rather than sheer brute force.

Learn how to turn water into wine (or, rather, champagne)? Well, funny you should mention that.

For much of a weather-ravaged Sao Paulo Grand Prix weekend, the world champion and his Red Bull team were either on their back foot or the perceived victims of aggravation.

For a start, he would be taking a five-grid-place penalty for using a new Honda engine. Then there was having to follow McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri home in the sprint race on Nov 2 (though his Red Bull seemed to have some very handy dry-road pace all of a sudden).

Then there was race control's delay in putting out one of the five red flags that interrupted Grand Prix qualifying, which had to be delayed until 7:30 am on Nov 3, following rain on Nov 2 afternoon. Max and boss Christian Horner claimed that ruined his chances and left him only 12th in Q2 and thus unable to progress into Q3 where pole position is decided.