Overview
- Max Verstappen suffered his first Q1 elimination since Sochi 2021, describing the car as lacking grip and declaring the title fight effectively over.
- Both Red Bull cars failed to advance from Q1, with Yuki Tsunoda last after serving as the team’s sprint ‘test subject’ for an alternative setup.
- Helmut Marko said extensive pre-qualifying changes made the car slower across multiple sectors, preserving the sector-two weakness and adding new deficits.
- Technical leads pointed to running too low and too stiff and to puzzling tyre preparation as likely factors, while Verstappen noted two different floors were tried without solving the issue.
- Red Bull intends to start from the pit lane with a new setup and a fresh Honda engine if conditions are dry, seeking a reset as Verstappen trails the championship leader by 39 points.