(Motorsport-Total.com) – Max Verstappen looks back at the result of the Spanish Grand Prix qualifying with mixed feelings. On the one hand, Red Bull managed to significantly reduce the gap to the front compared to Friday. On the other hand, the world champion was left with the feeling that even more would have been possible.
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In the end, Verstappen qualified in fifth place on the grid and, together with teammate Isack Hadjar, secured the third row for Red Bull. At one point, a place in the first two rows had even looked realistic.
Especially the first two sectors of his final lap gave hope for a top result. But precisely in the crucial final section, Verstappen suddenly lost confidence in his car – and valuable time.
Problems in the final sector cost Verstappen a top position
After qualifying, the Dutchman primarily blames the final section of the track for the missed top result. “I think it was a decent qualifying overall for us,” explains Verstappen. “It’s just a shame that the last lap didn’t come together in the third sector.”
Especially from turn ten onwards, the driving feel deteriorated abruptly. “For some reason, I suddenly had no grip. I started to slide too much and consequently lost time in turn ten and turn twelve. After that, I probably took some pace out in the last corners because the confidence was completely gone.”
According to his own assessment, this exact moment cost him at least the chance for third place on the grid. “P3 would definitely have been possible. But in the end, I don’t think that would have made a huge difference tomorrow.”
Verstappen surprised by small gap
Even more remarkable than the missed position, however, was the sheer performance of his car for Verstappen. On Friday, Red Bull had lost partly six to seven tenths of a second to the front on the demanding Barcelona track. After qualifying, this had been reduced to only about three and a half tenths.
Verstappen himself has no explanation for this. “Of course, it’s still three and a half tenths too much,” he says. “But it was definitely better than in practice.” He then openly admits: “Honestly, I don’t really understand how that happened.”
The world champion is particularly surprised that Red Bull had not made any fundamental changes to the car between Friday and Saturday. “We changed a few things, but we didn’t completely rebuild the setup or anything like that,” he explains.
That’s precisely why he can hardly explain the performance leap. “I don’t really understand why the gap suddenly halved.” The statement shows that even within the team, it’s not entirely clear why the car suddenly seemed significantly more competitive than at the beginning of the weekend.
Nevertheless, Verstappen generally views the development positively. Barcelona is internally considered one of the most important testbeds after the recent updates, because the track includes almost all types of corners and especially the fast sections were considered a weak point of the car.
Barcelona shows the true Red Bull picture
Even before the weekend, Verstappen had explained that Barcelona was a much better gauge of the car’s actual performance than some of the previous tracks. After qualifying, he now sees a clearer picture.
“Today we saw the true picture,” says the Dutchman. While he recognizes progress, he also sees clear deficits. “We see that we are still missing something. That’s why we simply have to keep working.”
Interestingly, according to Verstappen, the problem is not in a specific section of the track. “There isn’t a single corner where we lose a particularly large amount. It’s also not the case that we only lose time in the fast corners. It’s many small things that come together.”
Read more Formula 1 live ticker: The qualifying in Barcelona live
Interruption by Leclerc influenced Q3
Another factor for Verstappen was the red flag after Charles Leclerc’s accident. While most of the field had not yet completed a timed lap at the time of the interruption, Verstappen and Oscar Piastri already had a first fast time.
As a result, many competitors later had to complete their first lap on used tires, which was far from ideal given the high track temperatures. However, Verstappen sees not only advantages in this. From his perspective, it disrupted the usual rhythm of qualifying.
“Normally you do a lap, come back to the pits, refuel a bit, and go straight back out,” he explains. “Oscar and I suddenly had this ten-minute break. Maybe that didn’t necessarily help us in the end.”
Hadjar also surprised
Teammate Isack Hadjar also expressed surprise after qualifying at the comparatively small gap to the front. The Frenchman was anything but satisfied with the handling of his car.
“In addition to the already difficult track, we had extremely high track temperatures. This makes everything even more pronounced,” explains Hadjar. Despite progress over the weekend, he views the car’s potential critically.
“To be honest, with what we have right now, we don’t really deserve a pole position.” The small gap to the front was all the more surprising. “I’m really surprised how small the gap to pole was, considering how the car felt.”
Hadjar laments possible P3
Like Verstappen, Hadjar also believes that a place in the first two rows would have been possible. However, the key for him lay in the first corner of his decisive lap. “I simply risked too much there,” he admits.
As a result, he missed the apex, ruined the entire first sector, and lost valuable time. “When I look at the gaps to P3, it’s quite depressing. I could have been up there.”
Nevertheless, the frustration is limited. “The rest of the lap was really good. That’s why I don’t have many regrets. But it’s a shame, of course.”
Hope for the race
Even if Red Bull is still not on par with Mercedes, Saturday gives the team courage for the race. The fact that the gap could be almost halved within a day indicates that the Milton Keynes team understands the setup of their car better than just a few weeks ago.
Verstappen nevertheless remains realistic. More downforce, a better mechanical balance, and an overall more forgiving car are still at the top of his wish list. “As a driver, you always want more downforce and a better car,” he says. “We are constantly working on that.”
For the Grand Prix, the world champion expects other factors than in qualifying anyway. Tire wear, strategy, and pit stops are likely to become significantly more important than the starting position, in his opinion.
Read more Formula 1 live ticker: Qualifying in Barcelona live