Max Verstappen expressed his frustration immediately after the qualifying session for the Italian GP in Monza. The three-time world champion from Red Bull had to settle for ‘only’ the seventh time on Saturday afternoon. He narrowly beat his teammate Sergio Pérez, but had to give up a lot of ground – 0.695 seconds – to pole sitter Lando Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.
“Nothing worked! It didn’t go well at all in Q3. I just couldn’t get the car going anymore, even though it was still going reasonably well in Q2. Even then, I wasn’t competing for pole or anything, but it was a bit better,” Max Verstappen responded immediately after the session. For the Dutchman, it was his worst qualifying result since the GP in Miami last year (ninth).
Struggles with Understeer and Oversteer
In Q3 of the scorching session in Monza, Verstappen complained over the radio about understeer. “Suddenly there was a lot of oversteer. And then nothing works anymore, very strange. It’s been going on for a while: either oversteer or understeer. That’s very difficult.”
Championship Rival Lando Norris Secures Pole Position
Lando Norris, his closest rival in the championship, secured pole position in Monza and can therefore make up some ground in the championship standings. Verstappen, cynically: “Yes, we all have ourselves to thank for that…”
The race starts tomorrow at 6:00 AM UST.
Now available in stores and also digitally (with free delivery in the Netherlands!): the latest edition of the Formula 1 Magazine! With everything about the Dutch GP in Zandvoort, the exciting battle between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, interviews with George Russell, Rico Verhoeven and Ruud Gullit, reports from the paddock and much more!
