Max Verstappen reflects on strong recovery after bad qualifying in F1 Brazil GP to make it on the podium from pitlane, as Laurent Mekies adds on how it panned out.
Everyone was down and out at Red Bull after Saturday in F1 Brazil GP at Interlagos when Verstappen only managed 16th and Yuki Tsunoda was 19th. But the team decided for an overhaul in the set-up and brand new power unit elements to start from the pitlane.
Despite the situation, not many put down Verstappen in pulling off a miracle. And things happened which allowed him to get through the pack easily. But he was set back due to untimely puncture, which eventually worked in his favour to dump the hard compound and go for medium early.
As others started to pit, he shot up into the lead and there was an outside chance of one stop, but Red Bull decided otherwise. They thought about it, but eventually opted for the safe option. Mekies, however, adds if there was no puncture and he had a long first stint, then it was worth trying.
But the soft stint in the end worked in his favour too, as he almost had second from Andrea Kimi Antonelli. He managed to clear the big fish of Oscar Piastri and George Russell in his charge from pitlane to third and on the podium – that too in dry conditions after a greasy start.
Neither Verstappen and nor Mekies wanted to elaborated on the changes, but noted that power unit change wouldn’t have happened if the qualifying was not as bad. And neither wanted to go deep in ‘what could have happened’ situation but stressed more on ‘what actually happened’.
Turnaround –
Verstappen: “Yeah, I mean, miles better than our qualifying, that’s for sure. Just a very strong race. I think we had much better pace. I think it was a bit colder today, which maybe helped us. The car just felt a bit more responsive. Even with the puncture that I picked up on the Hard, to then drop back to last and come through the field again on the Mediums—I think we did the right strategy at the end. Even on the Soft, it seemed like it was OK. Just when you start getting close and I passed George, you already wear your tyres a bit. And then when I was getting close to Kimi, the tyres just started to overheat and you lose a lot of grip. The Soft is a bit more difficult than the Medium for that. But overall, a super strong race. Coming from the pit lane to the podium, 10, 11 seconds off the lead—I think for us it’s a very strong result and definitely didn’t expect that waking up this morning.”
Mekies: “Yeah, it was. I think at first credit to Max for the sensational drive. He won last year here from P16 on the wet. And I think we would probably agree that it was as sensational as last year to bring it to P3 from the pit lane on a dry, relatively uneventful race. The simple truth is that we were not happy with where the car was in terms of car balance and driver’s feeling after the sprint race. We had finished P4, but it was effectively a P5 without Oscar’s stoppage. And nobody wanted to settle for a car that would have been at that level. We felt the optimum windows were not where we were. We tried our only car at that moment to change it before the main qualifying. We obviously got it wrong. But it’s the way we go racing. We take risks.
“And if we don’t take that amount of risks, we don’t think we’ll be able to win.So we took that risk. It didn’t work. It’s painful. We got quali wrong. And that’s what it is. But again, we have taken a lot of these risks in the past few months. I insist it is the way this team goes racing. That’s the spirit in our racing. We had our highs and lows. We had a very difficult Budapest, I’m sure you recall. We had some good highs. Then after that, we took the decision to change the car again. Fit a new PU as well. And try to put again the car in a better window. The car was alive today. That’s the most important thing. The car was probably good enough to fight for the win today. And that’s what we’re after, after the relatively average result of the sprint.”
Why better, what done –
Verstappen: “I think everything together—set-up as well. I just felt a bit happier. And then I think also the temperatures today, a bit cooler, just felt like everything was working a bit better. Definitely better than P16, that’s for sure [if we had this car on Saturday].”
Mekies: “I’m not sure I would have a big interest to elaborate. But let me put it this way. I don’t think it’s a secret that our window is narrow. And it’s difficult to find that window for a given track layout. And for a given set of circumstances and conditions on a track layout. And we have been fighting to find it this weekend. And eventually we did. It does not mean that you start Las Vegas with a magic setup in the car. It’s a question we have to fight every weekend. And we’ll try to have it a bit smoother next weekend.”
Puncture, possibility if win –
Verstappen: “Impossible to know. I mean, the Hard tyre—I don’t know if it was going to be a really good tyre. I felt fine on the Medium, felt fine on the Soft. On the Hard tyre—initially maybe the Medium had a bit more grip from what I could see around me. But at the same time, you’re all in dirty air, you’re just sliding around, so it’s impossible to know. But for sure, it’s not ideal. To pit again, be on the Medium back in the pack fully, and then have to go all the way through the field—I think that compromised a bit that first stint on the Medium. I had to pass quite a few cars, you’re overheating tyres constantly, so that was a bit more of a difficult stint towards the end—I would say the last eight, 10 laps. But still, a very strong race for us.”
Mekies: “No, we don’t think it was winnable. We would probably never know where we would have finished. But obviously it’s a discussion that the guys had. And at some stage you need to make the call. And the call was made. I think it gave us a chance to have a very strong go at the podium. Ultimately we got it, maybe one lap more you would get a P2. And no, I don’t think there was any way you could have kept P1 if you just look at the entire deg and where you were. We didn’t replay that part, but certainly it didn’t feel like good news at the time. Then in fairness we were a little bit helped in our disadvantage by the VSC. So it has limited a little bit the loss. But we’ve lost something for sure.
“Maybe then you go a few laps longer in the whole sequence, hard, medium. And maybe at that stage you don’t do that final stop. But would and should don’t win races, like we always say. So it is what it is. There was quite a few debris on the track and it was simply a debris that got onto the higher sidewall. It’s part of the game. But it was unfortunate for sure. At that moment with the car at the back of the field and the slow puncture, it didn’t look exactly bright. I think in the race with the different starting positions I think we would have been in a fight with Lando. So allow me to look at it as a more positive sample compared to Mexico. Because I think here we would have been fighting.”
Mindset –
Mekies: “You do gain a lot. You learn a lot more in the dark moment of the qualifying last night than in any other moment. Let alone the setup. Let alone the changes in the three different cars, as you said. In moments like that where you clearly miss it. We don’t go there by luck or by mistakes. We go there because we feel there is a chance that it’s better. And when it’s obviously not better, it’s in this moment that the guys are fantastic.
“Both here and at the factory in Milton Keynes. They are asking the difficult questions. They are questioning what they read. They are questioning why. And that’s the sort of moment that you make steps. Perhaps not immediately, but you develop a new way of looking. You develop a new way of analysing. And as a group, you make steps forward.”
Here’s all the overtakes from Max Verstappen: https://www.formula1.com/en/video/2025-paulo-grand-prix-every-max-verstappen-overtake.1848428615516455167
Here’s Red Bull, Visa Cash App RB launch date
Here’s how F1 Brazil GP panned out