Dr Helmut Marko says that he expected Max Verstappen to be a bit more composed following his first championship win, noting that he tends to push beyond the limit and feels intense pressure during qualifying. He suggests this might be why he messed up that final corner in qualifying and made a similar mistake during the race, which completely destroyed his front tires:
Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko admits that He Had anticipated a Little more calmness fra Max Verstappen after his Maiden championship success -> Quote
Consequently, Dr Marko suggests that another World Titl May be The calming influence The Dutchman needs during races. “He goes over the limit – he wants too much,” Dr Marko said. “That didn’t work out here in the last sector. We thought that with the world championship title there would be some calmness from him, but he probably needs another title so that he doesn’t go into qualifying with so much pressure.”
Jeffrey Hughes2 said:Maybe Norris could take Sainz's spot at Ferrari next year... I know I certainly wouldn't mind seeing that happen.
There is just no way that’s going to happen—
Quote : Lando Norris Inks Extension with McLaren Through 2025 Featuring 'no Get-Outs'
Sainz is actually quite good; I suppose it's just a bit harder to find his rhythm early on with these new cars, and you probably shouldn't compare his qualifying times directly to Leclerc, who is just incredibly fast. I'm expecting him to be right in the mix for a podium alongside Perez tomorrow.
I think Perez might end up taking a penalty for ignoring the yellow flags, which would likely put Lando in P3. It should be really interesting to watch how Fernando, Sainz, and Perez try to fight their way past the Mercedes and McLaren drivers.🎉
Thomas Lopez51 said:What happened with Sainz to make him finish in 9th?
I suppose Alonso triggered that red flag just as Sainz was finishing up his first flying lap, so that lap wasn't counted—even though he likely would have been sitting in P1 at that moment. Then, during the final lap, Leclerc managed to pull a blistering pace, about three tenths faster, while Sainz made a pretty big mistake in Sector 3 and lost over a second because of it.
It’s such a shame... he was actually two tenths faster than Leclerc through those first two sectors. 🕺 He had a brilliant whole weekend, and honestly, Ocon was miles ahead... it’s just a pity.
But seriously, what on earth is going on with those Renault engines? This is the third different one they've used in just three races this season... it sounded like it just died right before he hit the turn.🙏
Max made a mistake and dropped three and a half tenths in the final sector, so I guess he could still grab pole if they restart the session.
Just to give some context when comparing this year's car to last year's, the best testing and qualifying times were hovering around 1:29:00, while the fastest race lap was about 1:32:00. It looks like Charles Leclerc is currently running about 5.5 seconds slower than last year's peak testing pace.
It’s the first day of testing, featuring entirely new cars, fresh tire compounds, and updated fuel blends. Right now, Leclerc's time is sitting about a second and a half behind last year's best Practice 1 time in Los Angeles, which puts him roughly 3.4 seconds off that pole position mark. I suspect these cars are going to be incredibly fast; if I had to bet, I'd say they'll be quicker than last year's models through the end of the season. 🙂
Christian Horner is really tearing into Lewis Hamilton on Sky, and I guess the interviewer, Lenny Kravitz, looked totally blindsided. He seemed to start stuttering and freezing up, almost like he was completely lost and didn't know how to proceed before asking 🤣
Charles Leclerc was less than a tenth behind Valtteri Bottas and about three tenths back from Lewis Hamilton, even though he only managed one run in the Third Qualifying Session. I guess Max also absolutely crushed his final lap 🙏
After the race, Toto Wolff mentioned that Lewis is doing better, and if he ends up testing positive, he’ll still be driving in Abu Dhabi, so there's no need to worry 🙂
While I'd love to see Russell competing on a more standard track—not some weirdly shaped oval—I just hope they don't have to spend the entire night before qualifying adjusting his seat and pedals in the car...
I suppose I might be overthinking it, but I really feel like we should be keeping a close eye on the Saints. I suppose we might be looking at the 49ers. Falcons Maybe the Panthers have a chance, I guess. The Patriots matchup seems like it might be a bit of a toss-up, I guess. Maybe things will go differently than expected. I guess I'm just feeling pretty optimistic about the Chiefs lately. Maybe they really can keep this momentum going. The Raiders—I suppose there's still much to see from them this season. I suppose we might see some movement from the Titans soon. Maybe they'll finally find their rhythm, I guess. I suppose we might see some interesting developments with the Cardinals. Maybe they'll find their rhythm soon. I suppose we should probably start looking ahead to the Steelers game. It feels like things might be shifting, though I guess it’s hard to say for sure just yet. I suppose we should probably start looking ahead to how the Rams might perform next week. It's hard to say for sure, but I really hope they can find some momentum. Seahawks