What left Max Verstappen shaking his head after sprint qualifying

Max Verstappen was left to rue “poor” grip and “ride problems” in his Red Bull as he suffered a disappointing qualifying for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix sprint race.

The four-time world champion, who remains in title contention, could only manage a time good enough for sixth on the grid, having been beaten by both McLaren drivers, as well as Mercedes’ George Russell and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.

Verstappen complained his Red Bull car was “completely broken” and “just undriveable” over team radio during the final part of qualifying at Interlagos.

The Dutchman was seen shaking his head inside the cockpit as he crossed the line to take the chequered flag.

“A lot of vibration in the car, a lot of ride problems,” Verstappen explained afterwards.

“Not what we want but besides that I think we just don’t have the grip. The middle sector is terrible, I just can’t get the car to turn.

“But at the same time also, I can’t really rely on the rear. So for us it’s quite poor I would say. It is what it is.”

Asked if forecast rain would help his bid to move up the order in Saturday’s sprint race, Verstappen replied: “I don’t know, we will find out.

“It’s quite clear we are lacking something and I’m not expecting that suddenly to be miles better in the wet, but we’ll see tomorrow.”

Red Bull can’t cure Verstappen’s issues

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko admitted the team cannot cure Verstappen’s woes in time for the sprint.

“If you look at sectors one and three, we are hundredths away from Norris, and middle sector with the most corners, it’s basically no grip, which means we don’t have enough downforce,” Marko told Sky Sports F1.

“That’s something we can’t cure for the Sprint but hopefully, with the data we get, we can adapt and make it more competitive for the main race."

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said: “Honestly, he's very unhappy with what the car does at the moment, so that's what you heard on the radio.

"When you cannot push the car to the limit the way you like, that's the sort of feedback you get. That's fair enough."

Verstappen's teammate Yuki Tsunoda qualified a disappointing 18th.