Max Verstappen will start the Brazilian Grand Prix from seventeenth place. Looking at the weather, he was among the biggest favorites in the qualification. The Dutch champion likes these conditions, and on the water the performance differences between the single-seaters are blurring at the same time. In the rain, however, it is much easier to pay for simple bad luck and bad timing. That’s exactly what happened to him in the rescheduled Brazilian qualification.
A nerve-racking and stressful morning in Sao Paulo demanded the absolute maximum from the riders and their teams. Red flags were raised five times and he paid for one interruption Max Verstappen. At the very end of Q2, he was on the edge of advancement.
About 90 seconds before the end, the yellow flags flew in the first sector after the crash of Lanca Stroll. At exactly the same moment, Charles Leclerc crossed the finish line, jumping from thirteenth place to third, thus pushing Verstappen into the relegation zone. About 60 seconds before the end, Liam Lawson crossed the finish line, pushing Max down to twelfth place.
Race management raised the red flags 45 seconds before the end of Q2, sealing Max’s fate. After qualifying, he didn’t like the FIA’s delay in canceling qualifying.
“When a car hits a wall, red flags must be raised immediately,” he was getting angry Verstappen in front of the Sky television microphone. “Why wait thirty or forty seconds for red flags? It’s shit!”
However, as we mentioned, Max’s exit was decided by Leclerc, who crossed the finish line almost at the same time as Stroll’s accident. It may have taken 45 seconds to raise the red flags, but at the time of the accident the Ferrari pilot was on the line and practically decided the fate of Verstappen, who is expected to start from seventeenth place after an engine change.
“Honestly, I hate it. It’s stupid and absolutely ridiculous to even talk about it.” bequeathed Verstappen in a brief but to the point interview.
In any case, Max is in for a chase today. We all know very well what he did in 2016. Anything is possible in these conditions and if anyone can push the limits of what’s possible on the water at Interlagos, it’s Max Verstappen.
