Verstappen looks to pressure Mercedes into mistakes from third
Verstappen looks to pressure Mercedes into mistakes from third
Max Verstappen will be looking to pressure the two Mercedes cars into mistakes at Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix as the Dutchman will start behind them in third.
The Circuit de Catalunya has always been a very difficult track for overtakes, with nobody ever winning when starting from third in the dry.
Verstappen himself, of course, did take his maiden victory in F1 in Barcelona when he started from fourth in 2016, with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg famously colliding at turn 4.
Commenting on how his race pace compares to that of Mercedes, Verstappen said: "Difficult to say, at the moment.
"I felt happy in the car. I just hope I can apply a bit of pressure. I know it's very hard to overtake around here but we're going to do everything we can to be close to them and to make it a bit difficult."
Verstappen missed out on pole position by over seven-tenths of a second, but he confessed to being "pretty happy" with the result, accepting the one lap pace difference between the Mercedes W11 and his Red Bull RB16.
"It's the maximum we can do at the moment," admitted Verstappen. "I think overall, the whole weekend we've been P3. Pretty happy with that, I hope we can be a bit closer in the race.
"Yesterday, in the long runs, it didn't seem too bad but of course tomorrow is a different day again so we'll have to see."
The long-runs in FP2 suggested Valtteri Bottas, who starts in second, had the best race pace, with Verstappen logging the second-best times in the long stints and Hamilton coming third - although the three ran a similar pace for the duration of the stints. The nine-time grand prix winner currently is runner-up in the drivers' championship, although he is 30 points behind Hamilton.
Before you go...
Hamilton praises "awesome" Mercedes team after another dominant qualifying
"Annoying" to be beaten to pole by Hamilton with tiniest of margins - Bottas
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Hamilton dealt China blow after major FIA decision as Ricciardo given huge Horner warning - GPFans F1 Recap
- 3 hours ago
F1 team unveil star-studded lineup in China
- Yesterday 23:12
F1 Qualifying Today: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 start times, schedule and TV
- Yesterday 22:27
Horner delivers threat to Ricciardo over Red Bull pressure
- Yesterday 21:57
F1 Sprint Race Today: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 start times, schedule and TV
- Yesterday 21:27
Wolff left FUMING with Mercedes despite amazing Hamilton lap
- Yesterday 20:57
Related news
Wolff 'p*****' by Verstappen error as star makes Mercedes debut
Hamilton gains HUGE win over Verstappen at unusual venue
F1 champion questions ‘value’ of Verstappen’s titles
Former F1 team manager reveals moment he KNEW Verstappen was 'special one'
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860