Here's the thing about a weekend like this: you can do everything right, tick every box, chip away at your lap times all Saturday long, and still end up scratching your head in the garage. Max Verstappen put down a serious, hard-fought 1:34.214 lap in Q3 at the United States Grand Prix, but it simply wasn't enough to secure pole position in Austin. Instead, Drivers’ Championship leader Kimi Antonelli stormed through to take the top spot, ending up just under two tenths quicker than the four-time World Champion.
That stunning performance from the Italian halted Verstappen's recent qualifying streak, which had seen him take pole in both Malaysia and Singapore before converting those into race wins. But it was the *how* that left the Dutchman truly baffled. Despite feeling like he avoided making any actual mistakes, the machine just wouldn't cooperate when it mattered most.
Yes - that’s the target. From third, we believe the car is good and Max is right there as well so as a team, it’s going to be helpful for sure, and we’ll try and have a go at it.
"I think just a few corners didn’t come together in Q3 which is something that I don’t understand because I didn’t make mistakes," Verstappen admitted afterwards. "[The car] was not as planted as what I’d hoped for so then you have little slides and you just can’t put the power down basically. It cost me in the first run unfortunately and okay, you have another run, but then the wind picked up and nobody could improve so it was very difficult."
Thankfully for the squad, the garage has backup right at the sharp end of the grid. Red Bull team mate Isack Hadjar pulled off an outstanding comeback performance in Texas to lock down P3 on the second row, sitting right behind Verstappen. It was a remarkable turnaround considering a slow, bruising start to his weekend.
"I didn’t do a lap on the softs this morning because I could not complete it – that’s how hard the car was to drive and to be third is outstanding," Hadjar said, reflecting on the team's relentless setup work. "I’m very happy with how we worked on the car. It’s not like we waited for the track conditions to improve or put on new tyres to see, we were working hard on it and I’m happy with the comeback."
Now, the target for Sunday is crystal clear. Red Bull is hunting a third successive Grand Prix win, and with both cars right up near the front, team tactics and grid positioning could change everything. When asked if the victory was on, Hadjar didn't hesitate: "Yes - that’s the target. From third, we believe the car is good and Max is right there as well so as a team, it’s going to be helpful for sure, and we’ll try and have a go at it."
Verstappen remains equally pragmatic as he looks toward lights out, noting that the margins across the whole field have been razor-thin all weekend. Details will decide it, tyre management will dictate the afternoon, and if the balance comes good, the beast underneath him should give him a fighting chance.
