Verstappen impressed with De Vries: 'It's not easy at all'

Nyck de Vries could count on many rave reviews after his Grand Prix debut in Monza. Max Verstappen also thinks his compatriot did an excellent job, calling De Vries' performance "impressive".

Verstappen, who took his 11th win of the season at Monza, has nothing but praise for the way De Vries finished his first F1 race. "I saw him battling in front of me when he was defending tenth at the time," the Red Bull Racing driver said in the press conference after the Italian Grand Prix.

Verstappen finds it commendable that De Vries produced such a result after suddenly being told to fill in for the ailing Alexander Albon. "It's not easy at all. I think he did a great job from the things I saw, also in terms of defending. He just kept his cool, didn't make mistakes and I'm very happy for him to score the points. It's impressive, of course, in your first race," said the reigning world champion.

De Vries put himself in quite a spotlight with his impressive performance in Monza. While an F1 seat may seem closer than ever, he completed a test for Alpine on Wednesday. In addition, the driver is on standby in case Albon is unexpectedly unable to take part in the Singapore GP.