Dramatic dip for Max Verstappen as McLaren dominate in Bra….read more
The latest round of action at the Brazilian Grand Prix saw one of the biggest storylines of the weekend: four-time world champion Max Verstappen endured a major qualifying stumble, while McLaren claimed pole for the Sprint race with authority.
McLaren surge, Verstappen struggles
In sprint-qualifying at the São Paulo circuit, McLaren’s Lando Norris delivered a blistering lap to take pole position, with rookie teammate Oscar Piastri also delivering strong pace to secure third.
Between the McLaren pair sat young Kimi Antonelli in the Mercedes, who surprised many by grabbing second on the grid.
By contrast, Verstappen could only manage sixth on the timesheet—well off the front-runners and clearly off the pace compared to McLaren.
“Undriveable” – Verstappen’s verdict
Following the session, Verstappen was blunt about his day’s work: his car was “completely broken” and “undriveable”. He lamented a lack of performance and pace-handling through the session, an uncharacteristic admission for the dominant driver.
Further analysis noted that his vehicle fell “a class away” from the McLaren and Mercedes packages across the day.
Implications and context
This result matters on several levels:
The Sprint weekend format puts extra value on strong qualifying performance because grid position is crucial for the short 100 km race ahead. McLaren now have a prime opportunity to convert their front-row lockout into strong race results.
For Verstappen, starting from sixth puts him on the back-foot in a championship relevance context: any lost ground now can widen the points gap to his title rivals.
McLaren’s resurgence is underlined: Norris taking pole indicates that their package is working and they are increasingly threats in the title fight this season.
What went wrong for Verstappen?
Several factors combine:
The handling of his Red Bull Racing RB21 reportedly lacked balance and grip, making it difficult to push to the limit. He admitted the car was “terrible” in terms of feeling.
The pace of rivals – especially McLaren – appeared to be superior at this circuit, exposing a weakness in Red Bull’s setup or adaptation to the Interlagos layout this weekend.
Qualifying is always tight at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, and any car off-balance or that fails to extract maximum from its tyres is severely compromised; this seems to be precisely what happened to Verstappen.
What’s next?
With polarisation of the grid gone in his favour, Norris will now aim to convert his pole position into maximum points in the Sprint. If he succeeds, the momentum could swing further in McLaren’s direction in the title race.
For Verstappen, the task now is to recover. Starting from sixth, he will need to fight through the field in the Sprint and then the main race — a scenario he has mastered in the past, but one that adds risk.
In short: McLaren have made a statement; Verstappen has a setback. How both respond over the remainder of the weekend will be keenly watched.