Max Verstappen said Red Bull could always count on him, as the four-times Formula One champion gave new team boss Laurent Mekies a winning start in a Saturday sprint at the Belgian Grand Prix.

In his first public appearance since being appointed as the new team principal of Red Bull Racing, Laurent Mekies outlined his first impressions of the squad.

A new Red Bull era begins under Mekies at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix. He was appointed after 18 months at Racing Bulls. He worked at Ferrari for five years, as deputy team principal and racing director, and at the F.I.A., which governs Formula 1, for four years, initially as safety director and then deputy race director.