Max Verstappen was left to reflect on a dramatic end to his F1 Austrian GP qualifying session. An uncontrollable snap of oversteer sent him into the barriers at Turn 9, ending his hopes of a front row position at the Red Bull Ring.
Verstappen’s Q3 F1 Austrian GP troubles began at Turn 6
Max Verstappen revealed the trouble had begun before the crash itself. The concerning moment appeared at Turn 6.
“So in that lap, already in Turn 6 I had a very weird snap on entry, because that’s basically the second highest speed [corner]. And then when I went into Turn 9, as soon as I turned the wheel I was gone.
“It felt like a bit of a lack of some downforce or oversteer. I didn’t even change anything on the car. There is margin in places, so you try to push a little bit more, but at the same time also not a stupid amount more. But as soon as I turned the wheel it just completely went away.”
When asked whether the rear wing’s straight mode could have contributed to the loss of downforce, Verstappen confirmed the team had taken precautions but that it made no difference.
“We are aware of that. I think more team are aware of that. And you already take measures for that, so I did that. But still, it’s somehow… I mean, I think normally you can catch an oversteer, but this was not controllable at all, unfortunately.”
A calculated tyre gamble
Verstappen explained that a deliberate tyre strategy decision had left him with little margin heading into the closing stages of qualifying.
He only had three new softs heading into it, just making it through to Q3 on used tyres.
“I knew it was going to be tight, because I knew what the lap time was going to be, or our guess for the cut-off. But at the same time, it’s the risk that I was willing to take on the team, because I only had three sets, and I wanted two new ones in Q3. To stay, of course, in the loop with the other drivers.”
Despite the crash, the Dutchman felt his F1 Austrian GP qualifying effort had shown genuine pace before it was cut short.
“My first lap in Q3 felt really good, and for us probably the best lap of the weekend. I think it was not enough for pole, partly probably also because already what happened in Turn 6. And then, of course, in Turn 9, that was it. But even then, I think Q3 would have been a very nice result for us. I think Mercedes was a little bit too strong in the high-speed corners compared to us.”
Flag response draws Verstappen’s criticism
Verstappen was visibly surprised to learn that only a single waved yellow flag had been shown following his high-speed crash, raising immediate safety concerns.
“Yeah, I mean, I only heard about that now, that’s quite crazy.”
When asked whether he was physically unharmed, Verstappen confirmed he had escaped without injury.
“Yes, well, as good as it can be.”
Verstappen assesses F1 Austrian GP upgrade and race hopes
Beyond the qualifying incident, Verstappen offered a broadly positive verdict on Red Bull’s upgrade package brought to the F1 Austrian GP. However, he acknowledged there was still work to do.
“You always want it to work, right? You always want a bigger upgrade to work well, and I think we, for most of it, we are quite happy with it. A few bits that can be done better.”
However, Verstappen tempered expectations heading into Sunday, pointing to a familiar weakness in Red Bull’s package.
“Our race pace has normally been our weak link, so I hope that tomorrow maybe it can be a bit better, but there are no guarantees on that.”
A Power Unit issue that had troubled Verstappen on Friday also appeared to have been resolved, with the Dutchman confirming the fix held through qualifying.
“I think it’s fixed. We felt okay today.”
