Max Verstappen has admitted that deciphering the “huge advantage” that McLaren harbours when it comes to tyre management in Formula 1 is “not that simple”.
Red Bull and Verstappen were left trailing by over a pit stop’s margin in Miami as the McLaren duo surged ahead for a 1-2 following early battles with the Dutchman.
Verstappen, who lined up on pole position, was able to preserve his lead after Lando Norris ran wide at Turn 2, tumbling down the order as he returned to the track.
However, after Verstappen pulled out all of the stops to keep Piastri at bay, the Australian made his way past on Lap 14 into Turn 1 before dashing off down the road.
Norris eventually followed suit four laps later, confirming Verstappen’s post-qualifying doubts about Red Bull’s victory chances.
“I think that overall they are better in the race,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“You saw that on intermediates in the rain as well [in the Sprint race].
“As soon as those tyres start to overheat, they have a huge advantage.
“So, then we are all doing something wrong with the tyres, apart from McLaren.”
Speaking after the race, Verstappen, once again, pointed out McLaren’s superior tyre management as the key factor behind the team’s crushing dominance.
“They were just miles up the road, they were just miles faster than everyone else on the track where the thermal degradation is very high,” he said.
“Yeah, they just have a massive advantage; I think that’s quite clear.”
Asked for a theory as to why the McLaren is better on the tyres, he responded: “If we knew that, we would have changed it already, right, but it’s not that simple.”
Red Bull lacking ‘pure performance’ as well
After the opening six rounds, Verstappen trails championship leader Piastri by 32 points and Norris by 16 with a quarter of the season already completed.
Considering the struggles with the car and the upcoming Technical Directive arriving in Spain, it could be a lot worse for the reigning F1 World Champion.
Yet, the stark contrast between qualifying and the race is a cause for concern in the eyes of Verstappen, as he explained that the McLaren performs better on a Sunday.
He added: “Honestly, I think if you look at the on boards in qualifying, I think it’s quite clear, but then in the race, you don’t need to go flat out on the limit and then of course your tyres are just running cooler, then yeah you have more grip. It’s as simple as that.”
But Verstappen insisted that it’s not all down to the tyre management when it comes to Red Bull’s inferiority to the Woking-based squad on a race day.
“I think also it’s in general pure performance of the car, but yeah, the management they have on their tyres is incredible.”
He even suggested that fixing the balance of the car wouldn’t necessarily fix all of its issues with the tyres.
“It’ll help, but we will still struggle, of course, with overheating.” he concluded.
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