---
title: "Verstappen ‘could not afford any mistakes’ after early reliability issues"
canonical: "https://readmotorsport.com/2022/12/19/verstappen-could-not-afford-any-mistakes-after-early-reliability-issues/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Hamilton Lyndon-Griffiths"
section: "F1 News"
published: "2022-12-19T14:47:35Z"
modified: "2022-12-19T14:47:36Z"
---

# Verstappen ‘could not afford any mistakes’ after early reliability issues

Max Verstappen says his early season setbacks made him feel he “could not afford any mistakes” if he was to overturn a 46-point deficit to win the 2022 Formula 1 title.

Verstappen became only the 11th driver in F1 history to claim back-to-back world championships in a dominant 2022 campaign, winning a record 15 races in a single season and scoring a new high points tally of 454.

But despite sweeping to the drivers’ crown with four races remaining, Verstappen’s title hopes looked bleak after just three races when he suffered two DNF’s in Bahrain and Australia, leaving him 46 points behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

When asked if he could pinpoint an area where he improved this year, Verstappen noted the significance of scoring points at every race, particularly after his early retirements left him on the back foot in the title fight.

“You know when you have to fight for a title, you need to score points basically every race as much as you can,” Verstappen said at the FIA prize giving, as quoted by Motorsport.com.

“That’s why at the beginning of the year, it was very tough to have these DNFs. I knew from that point onwards, I could not afford any mistakes from my side, in case we would have retirements for whatever reason.

“You always try to be as clear as you can be and try to be as perfect as you can every single weekend. That’s what I try to demand from myself every time I jump into the car.”

Verstappen’s second title win marked a stark contrast to the way he clinched his maiden crown in 2021, where he triumphed after a season-long duel with Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull’s superiority over its rivals allowed it to streak clear in both championships, with the team winning 10 out of the last 11 races.

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner heaped praise on Verstappen’s 2022 season, believing he “made another step forward” from his first world title win last year.

“He’s driven with such maturity, with such composure this year, and he’s delivered some massive wins under huge pressure,” said Horner.

“It’s only when you look back at the season, and we’ve started to do that in the last week, when you think back to some of the races like Saudi or Miami or Montreal, there’s been some massive moments there.

“We didn’t have the quickest car at the beginning of the year. He very much kept us in contention and just kept pushing, and drove with phenomenal precision and pace.

“When there was an opportunity there to take, he grabbed it with both hands.”