Following the final qualification of 2025, in which Max Verstappen claimed pole position for Red Bull, Laurent Mekies is above all proud of his entire team. The Frenchman is impressed by the hard work of his mechanics and the phenomenal pole laps of his lead driver. For the final race in Abu Dhabi, he wants to ensure that Verstappen has an extremely competitive RB21 at his disposal; with his title rivals in his wake, the Dutchman has everything to gain from a lightning-fast car.
“It was an incredible performance,” Mekies responded after the qualification on F1TV. “I am so proud of the team. It’s not like we had the fastest car yesterday; we were about four-tenths behind McLaren in the fast laps. Of course, it’s always difficult to draw hard conclusions on Fridays, but we did indeed improve the car for the qualification. The team did a great job, and also Yuki Tsunoda who was able to give Verstappen a tow. Well, and Max just put down two incredible laps. It’s a shame you don’t get points on Saturday,” he laughed.
Sensational Finale
With the race in mind, Red Bull cannot force the championship; Lando Norris only needs to finish on the podium to take the title. Therefore, the team is fully focused on finding more speed. “We are focusing on getting the maximum out of the car,” Mekies continued. “We have no influence on what happens behind us, the most important thing is that we simply have the fastest race car tomorrow. The atmosphere in the team is still fantastic. You must not forget that we work our whole lives towards this. This level of intensity and competitiveness is not experienced every year, it’s wonderful for all of us. We have a huge passion for this sport, so whatever happens tomorrow, it will definitely be a sensational finale.”
