Key Highlights
- Max Verstappen charged from 21st on the grid to finish second at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
- Red Bull detected a loss of rear downforce, while Verstappen reported a major change in car balance.
- Red Bull matched McLaren’s 33-point haul in Brazil and maintained a 17-point advantage in the constructors’ championship.
Max Verstappen delivers another Sao Paulo comeback
Max Verstappen produced another outstanding recovery drive at the Formula 1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, moving from 21st on the grid to second place. It was the third consecutive year in which the Red Bull Racing driver staged a major comeback at Interlagos, following his victory from 17th in 2024 and his climb from the pit lane to third place last year.
Verstappen said his start from the uphill grid did not go according to plan. The four-time world champion took responsibility for the slow reaction, explaining that he had held the clutch incorrectly. Once the race settled, however, Verstappen made rapid progress on intermediate tyres and reached the podium fight much earlier than Red Bull’s simulations had predicted.
“As always, I think no sim in the world will predict that you will go from P21 to P2 or that you get 14 places in 5 laps,” Laurent Mekies said post-race in Red Bull’s hospitality unit.
“There is no sim able to do that. So, Max is beating the simulations on a regular basis.”
When the leading drivers began switching from intermediates to slick tyres at the end of lap 16, Verstappen was running fifth. The balance of his RB22 subsequently changed significantly. Verstappen said the shift was not solely the result of the slick tyres, noting that the car also felt substantially different during the closing stages, when he returned to intermediates.
Red Bull investigates rear downforce loss
Red Bull had already identified a reduction in rear downforce through its race data. Mekies said the team must conduct further analysis to determine precisely what caused the loss and how much it affected Verstappen’s performance against McLaren.
Earlier in the year, Verstappen had repeatedly raised concerns about “car degradation”. After climbing out of the RB22 in Sao Paulo, he immediately inspected the rear of the car for any visible damage. Mekies confirmed that Verstappen remained unhappy with the balance after the switch to dry-weather tyres and continued to feel the problem when the race returned to intermediate tyres.
“You may have heard Max being fairly vocal with the car balance once we had switched to dry tyres,” Mekies admitted.
“From that point onwards, he has been very, very unhappy with the car balance, including when we came back to the inters at the very end. So we’ll need to analyse what happened there, how much of that is explaining our time loss and whether or not that would have been enough to fight with McLaren.”
Red Bull strengthens position against McLaren
Despite the technical concerns, Red Bull Racing made valuable progress in the constructors’ championship. Verstappen had said during a Saturday media session in Sao Paulo that finishing second in the drivers’ championship was not important to him. His stated priority for the remaining races was helping Red Bull secure third place in the constructors’ standings.
With Lando Norris starting from pole position and Verstappen lining up on the back row, the Brazilian race could have produced a difficult result for Red Bull. Instead, Red Bull and McLaren each scored 33 points over the weekend. Verstappen’s second place was supported by a strong performance from Isack Hadjar, allowing Red Bull to retain a 17-point lead over the team led by Andrea Stella.
Power-unit penalty forced Verstappen onto the back row
Although Verstappen’s recovery drives at Interlagos have become a recurring feature, the Red Bull driver has indicated that he would prefer to end the pattern. During the press conference, he urged Red Bull to avoid a grid penalty in Brazil next year.
Mekies explained that avoiding a grid drop had also been Red Bull’s original plan. The team had hoped to delay an inevitable power-unit change for as long as possible, potentially until Las Vegas, but events after Friday’s practice sessions left it with no alternative.
“Of course, it’s frustrating because the pace seemed good on Friday and also on Saturday morning, and in some respects also in Q1 when we let him qualify. But it’s part of the game, you know?” Mekies said.
“It’s easy to forget that this is the first year with our own power unit. The guys have been doing an extraordinary job, we only took our first penalty with Max this weekend and that’s what it is. It was not planned, but we had a small issue on Friday that forced us to do so. But that’s what it is.”
Why This Matters
Verstappen’s Sao Paulo recovery preserved Red Bull’s advantage over McLaren in a closely contested constructors’ championship battle. The result also highlighted both the scale of Verstappen’s race-day performance and the unresolved balance issue affecting the RB22. Red Bull’s analysis will determine whether the rear downforce loss was responsible for the time lost to McLaren and whether the team can prevent similar power-unit and grid-penalty complications in future races.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far did Max Verstappen climb in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix?
Verstappen started 21st and finished second, gaining 19 positions during the race.
What problem did Red Bull identify on Verstappen’s RB22?
Red Bull’s data showed a loss of rear downforce. Verstappen also reported that the car’s balance changed significantly after the move to slick tyres and remained problematic when the race returned to intermediates.
How did the Sao Paulo result affect Red Bull and McLaren?
Red Bull and McLaren each scored 33 points over the weekend. Red Bull retained a 17-point advantage over McLaren in the constructors’ championship.
