Max Verstappen races to second place in Mexico qualifying despite increased pressure – why he is surprised and why the guesswork continues at Red Bull
In the end, world champion Max Verstappen had to keep a cool head in the heat of the moment: in qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix, the Red Bull driver’s first fast lap in Q3 was initially canceled due to the track limits. But in the second attempt, Verstappen brings the lap cleanly to the finish line, improves by another two-tenths compared to the first attempt, and is at least able to secure second place on the grid behind Ferrari star Carlos Sainz.
Even more important: Verstappen also remains just under a tenth ahead of World Cup rival Lando Norris, who will be third in the McLaren, with his lap time of 1:16.171 minutes. For the Dutchman, the result is a big surprise after his completely messed up training Friday in Mexico:
“Yesterday I did about four laps, two with little fuel and two with a lot. We basically couldn’t use that at all, no information. So the third practice session was very important to me, I tried to do as many laps as possible,” Verstappen explains the situation: ‘We were behind, the car didn’t feel great, everything was just very difficult. So I knew it was going to be a tough qualifying.’
“But we still made some final changes,” reveals Verstappen, “and everything started to feel better”. With regard to the progress made on Saturday, the Red Bull driver is clear: “We didn’t do any laps, so it could only get better. We were massively behind, so in that sense it’s been a pretty terrible weekend so far.”
Ultimately, the result, which Verstappen describes as “incredible”, is all the more pleasing: “Considering the difficulties we had, to still be on the front row shows that we stayed calm and just started looking at the data to understand the car a bit better and be a bit more competitive.”
Alone: For motorsport consultant Helmut Marko, the surprise after qualifying is apparently far less than for his fast protégé: “We said that if we could get a grip on sector three, we lost about three or four tenths in the other sessions, then it looks quite good. That was the case,” explains the Austrian in an interview with Sky.
“Then, of course, another magical lap from Max, after the first one was canceled, keeping his nerve again and putting in an optimal lap,” Marko praises his superstar, as do the engineers: ‘They developed it in the right direction and our car only works in a very narrow range. But this time it really pointed in the optimal direction.’
That’s why Marko’s conclusion on ORF is quite positive: “Second place is very, very good. Especially here, there is a slipstream up to the corner, so it can even be an advantage,” believes the Red Bull consultant with regard to the start – which his driver, however, does not want to think about yet: “It just depends on the start and what happens in front of you. I think I’ve been in many starting positions here, and yes, it’s a long way, anything can happen.”
The same applies to the race pace on Sunday, because, according to Verstappen, it is completely unknown due to the training problems. “I’m not expecting any miracles,” says the Dutchman, adding, “In Austin, Ferrari was really very fast. This weekend, McLaren may not have been as strong, but they were still competitive. So from my side, I don’t know, we’ll see tomorrow.”
Marko, on the other hand, has hopes that the adjustments made will also have a positive effect in the race: “We believe that these changes will improve tire wear,” says the Austrian, knowing full well: “If you take the times from Ferrari, of course, if they can keep it up for the duration of the race, then it will be very difficult.”
