Max Verstappen gives “nothing dramatic” verdict after qualifying behind Lewis Hamilton for Chinese GP Sprint
Max Verstappen seems unfazed after losing the Pole Position to Lewis Hamilton for the Chinese GP Sprint race.
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Max Verstappen (via Red Bull), Lewis Hamilton (via Getty)
Max Verstappen came extremely close to clinching the Sprint Pole Position from Lewis Hamilton at the Chinese GP. The Dutchman put forth an extremely impressive result in an inferior chassis to Ferrari and McLaren. Notably, Verstappen trailed Hamilton by just 0.018s to achieve the pole position for the Sprint race. Despite narrowly missing the first-place start, the 27-year-old gives a neutral reaction to the same and remains positive for the main race on Sunday.
Max Verstappen finished P2 in the Australian GP despite facing treacherous conditions on the track. The Dutchman came extremely close to securing the race victory against Lando Norris but failed in the end. Regardless, the Chinese weekend might be a different story for Verstappen as he looks promising of a positive outing this time around.
Speaking on the front-row start at the Chinese GP behind Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen remained humble but confident. The 27-year-old reckoned that Red Bull was quite off the pace in the practice session. Therefore, the Dutchman was delighted to start the sprint race from the front row just behind Hamilton. Moreover, the reigning world champion insisted that despite the final lap being good, racing around the driving line from medium to soft with no reference was a bit tricky.
I do think that in the first practice, we were quite a bit off, So I’m very happy to be on the front row. The lap was very good. It’s always very tough when you go from a medium to a soft to nail the lap with no references.
Max Verstappen told RacingNews365.com
Max Verstappen further pointed out that he was just 0.018s off the pace from the pole position which was surprising. The Dutchman believed that Red Bull wasn’t even on the trajectory to secure a front-row start for the Sprint Race. As a result, the 27-year-old reiterated that he was happy to start P2 in the Sprint. Verstappen revealed that there were no dramatic changes to the car that improved its performance in China. He emphasized that the balance wasn’t ‘massively off’ despite the car being too slow against the rivals.
When you look at it, it was 0.018s off pole. I don’t think we should have even been on the front row anyway, so I’m very happy to be second. Nothing dramatic [changed on the car] because I don’t think the balance is massively off. It’s just too slow, I would say.
Max Verstappen added
Max Verstappen labels front-row start as ‘little motivation boost’
Red Bull’s first weekend of the 2025 season was mediocre, especially after Liam Lawson crashed out his chassis due to the torrential conditions. Moreover, Lawson’s lap got deleted due to violating track limits in the Qualifying which caused him to fall to P20. Still, Max Verstappen remains motivated after securing a front-row start as Milton Keynes could still turn the weekend around.
Verstappen insists that a P2 start is good for Red Bull as a whole. The Dutchman believed the positive results as a little motivation for the team to keep their chins up and keep working hard. The 27-year-old reassured that Milton Keynes is trying to keep nailing the laps and maximize performance. The reigning champion highlighted that it was necessary to keep pushing despite facing some challenging situations on track.
But this is, this is good for us. It’s a little little motivational boost. We keep nailing the laps, we keep trying to maximise everything that we got. You need to do that as well when you’re maybe struggling a little bit more for pace.
Max Verstappen noted
Max Verstappen anticipates ‘very hard’ battle against McLaren
McLaren has remained consistent in their efforts and performances due to their seemingly superior chassis to the rivals. Lando Norris still couldn’t achieve the Pole Position or a front-row start against the highly experienced drivers. Yet, Max Verstappen anticipates an impending difficult battle against Woking in the coming sessions.
Verstappen reveals that McLaren looked very fast in the Sprint Qualifying session up until the very last lap run. As a result, the Dutchman feels that keeping them at bay would be very hard in not only the Sprint race but also the main race on Sunday. Regardless, the 27-year-old prepares for a fun battle against the drivers at the forefront and looks ahead to compete against them for victory in the end.
I think they looked very fast up until that last run, So I think it will be very hard to keep them behind. But hopefully, it will be fun. Hopefully, we can race a bit. That would be nice for me.
Max Verstappen explained
Red Bull still has to work hard on finding massive grounds for improvement early on in the 2025 season. The rivals seem extremely competitive from the get-go and are set to provide tough competition to Milton Keynes. The Austrian constructor will also have to deal with Lawson as his woeful performances continue. Time will tell about how the team pans out in the coming sessions as they prepare for one of the greatest battles for achieving the top spot.
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