Verstappen: 'Sore' Leclerc raced harder at Silverstone

Max Verstappen says Charles Leclerc might have remained "sore" from losing a battle between them at the Austrian GP as the Ferrari man pushed his rival all the way at Silverstone.

Verstappen won in Austria with thanks to a late overtake on Leclerc, which saw the Dutchman barge his way up the inside and leave the Ferrari off-track, although the stewards saw it as a racing incident not worthy of punishment.

The pair were once again in close quarters at the British GP, but Leclerc was far more fearsome this time around, slamming the door shut on Verstappen on several occasions, including at Stowe corner as both drivers hurtled along at over 150mph.

Verstappen eventually got away from Leclerc after the mid-race safety car, only to suffer a collision with Sebastian Vettel which let Leclerc back through to take a fourth podium finish in succession.

The Dutchman was happy to go through round two with Leclerc, whom he believed to be more motivated by his Spielberg reverse.

"I think he was a little bit sore still from Austria so he was defending really hard, but it's fine, I'm all for that," said Verstappen.

"I didn't want to take too much risk in those battles to damage the car, because I knew we were quite a bit faster.

"They had just enough top speed to stay in front of us, and at these moments my battery was not charged enough. So you just have to wait for the right moment.

"I just needed to pick my moment, but then luckily the team did it for me with a good strategy, and then it was all looking good of course for a good result."

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