Verstappen “could have done a better job” despite taking Belgian GP F1 pole

Max Verstappen admits that he “could have done a better job” in getting his tyres into the right working window despite claiming his first Belgian Grand Prix Formula 1 pole position.

Connor McDonagh

28 Aug 2021

Pole sitter Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing in qualifying parc ferme.
© FIA Pool Image for Editorial Use

Verstappen denied Williams’ George Russell a sensational pole at the death in Belgium, with title rival Lewis Hamilton set to start just behind in third.

Qualifying at Spa was hit by heavy rain, making it a “tricky” session for all of the drivers.

Reflecting on his pole lap, Verstappen said: “I think the lap was alright but I don’t think in the wet it’s all about the lap. It’s also about how you warm up your tyres. It’s super sensitive with temperatures. I mean if you have a little bit more temperature, more confidence on the braking, you can brake later, you’ve got more grip on turn-in, better traction.

“I do think the lap itself was OK but my tyres felt a bit cold, especially the first sector and maybe the start of the second one. Looking back at that we could have done a better job. It’s so tricky out there to make the right call. Tricky but it was alright.”

Despite conditions being treacherous in Q3, the majority of teams opted for the intermediate tyre, rather than the extreme wet.

Verstappen why teams didn’t opt for Pirelli’s wet tyre in Q3 and how it made for a “quite extreme” session.

“I think all qualifying, it was pretty tricky,” Verstappen added. “Of course, conditions wise with the track but also to get the tyres in the right window. It was really difficult to find a gap, to not have problems with the visibility but overall, it was important to stay on track and do your laps at the right time.

“It was just building up like that through Q1 and Q2, and then, of course, we had quite a long break of the crash and then to straight into Q3 with the conditions like that, it was very tricky because the track looks very wet and you want to go out on an extreme but these tyres were extremely slow. Then you go out on an inter which isn't really made for a lot of water on track.

“It was difficult but this track is amazing to drive in the dry and then when you have wet qualifying, I wouldn’t say scary, it’s really interesting and quite extreme in Q3 when you know you have to push and try to go to the limit in the wet here.”