Max Verstappen is remaining “realistic” over his Formula 1 title chances this season but says he “won’t give up” until it’s ma🍸thematically out of reach.

Following a sixth podium finish in suc🌠cession in 2020 at Spa-Francorchamps, Verstappen sits second in the drivers’ championship - trailing Lewis Hamilton by 🅷47 points.

Red Bull consultant Helmut Marko is quoted as saying: “Verstappen can still become world champion, that's our goal for the season,” by German publication SpeedWeek, while team boss Christian Horner said after tℱhe race at Spa: “We have an outside c⛄hance in this championship.”

When asked about his chances of winning the t♍itle this season, Verstappen said: “Well we won’t give up but I am very realistic that at the moment we are just slow, we need luck to win race꧅s. I’ve actually gained some points back. At the moment it looks like we’re still in the championship fight but every race I am losing more or less seven points, at one point it will be a very big gap. Like I said, just being realistic. It’s good.

“Every single weekend I of course try to get the best out of it. It’s not like I am down or anything, but be realistic. In Spa again, we were half a s🐽econd slower a lap compared to them so you can’t really fight them at the moment.”

For this weekend’s race, teams will no longer be allowed to alter which engine modes they use during qualifying and the race - a move which is expected to negatively impact Mercedes-powereꦿd teams especially.

Verstappen is unsure of the impact this will have in terms 𝄹of performance and believes it ꦚwill have little impact in the race when it comes to overtaking and defending.

“Well🐎 hopefully not too much,'' Verstappen said. “I don’t thinkཧ for us - the party mode - was that big. I don’t think we will lose a lot of power there. The other teams, difficult to say so we will see in Q3 how it’s going to be.

“I see two Mer𝄹cedes cars in front of me which most of the time I am not able to get in the DRS from. It probably is the same. To be honest it just makes everything a bit easier, not that it was very difficult before but you just stay in one mode in the restart or the start and it’s a bit better I guess.

“After qualifying normally we are not allowed to change anything on the car but we were allowed to of course change the engine modes so I guess if you want 🍌to go in♍ that same direction I guess it’s a good thing to do that as well with the engine.”